7 months ago
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Terming it a substance of “grave concern”, the Supreme Court connected Friday (October 17, 2025) took suo motu cognisance of the increasing menace of “digital arrests” scams and sought responses from the Union authorities and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi initiated the proceedings aft receiving a ailment from a septuagenarian pistillate successful Ambala, who alleged that fraudsters posing arsenic CBI officials and judicial authorities had forged Supreme Court orders to defraud her of implicit ₹1 crore. She aboriginal lodged FIRs with the Cyber Crime Branch of the Ambala constabulary successful Haryana.
The Bench observed that, successful the mean course, it would person directed the State constabulary to expedite the probe and instrumentality it to its logical conclusion. However, it was “aghast” to larn that the fraudsters had fabricated aggregate judicial orders successful the sanction of the Supreme Court, including 1 purportedly issued nether the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to artifact entree to slope accounts, bearing the forged signature of a justice on with the seal of an Enforcement Directorate serviceman successful Mumbai.
“The forgery of documents and the brazen transgression misuse of the name, seal, and judicial authorization of this tribunal oregon immoderate High Court is simply a substance of sedate concern. The fabrication of judicial orders bearing forged signatures strikes astatine the precise instauration of nationalist spot successful the judiciary and the regularisation of law. Such acts represent a nonstop battle connected the dignity of this instauration and cannot beryllium equated with regular cases of cybercrime,” the Bench underscored.
‘Pan-India’ effect
The tribunal further observed that this was not a “solitary” lawsuit but portion of a larger pattern, with akin scams being reported from crossed the country. Emphasising the request for a coordinated nationalist response, it observed that “stern enactment connected a pan-India basis” was required done concerted efforts of the Centre and constabulary authorities successful assorted States to uncover the afloat grade of this “criminal enterprise” involving forged judicial documents, extortion, and the unlawful detention of guiltless citizens, peculiarly elder citizens.
Accordingly, the tribunal sought responses from the Union government, the CBI, and the Superintendent of Police of the Cyber Crime Cell, Ambala.
It besides requested Attorney-General R. Venkataramani to assistance the tribunal successful examining the modus operandi down specified crimes, and directed the Supreme Court Registry to transmit the ailment and accompanying documents to the applicable authorities for due action.
