Narendra Kumar vs. The State Of Jharkhand

Held

The Court held that it was an admitted fact that only Rs. 300/- had been transferred into the petitioner's bank account. The petitioner is a businessman whose business is being hampered by the inability to operate his account. The Court noted that the Bank had made several requests to the Gujarat Police to unfreeze the account, but the police remained unresponsive. In light of the minimal amount involved and the hardship caused to the petitioner's business, the Court directed the respondent-Bank to unfreeze the petitioner's bank account and allow him to operate it forthwith. As a condition, the petitioner was directed to maintain a lien on the Rs. 300/- amount in the account. The petition was disposed of on these directions.

Facts

The petitioner, Narendra Kumar, a shopkeeper in Dhanbad, filed a writ petition seeking to unfreeze his bank account with the Bank of Baroda, Hirapur Branch, Dhanbad. The account was frozen by the bank based on a request from Gujarat Police. The petitioner stated he is a law-abiding citizen paying GST and that the freezing of his account has jeopardized his business. The Bank of Baroda explained that a complaint of online fraud of Rs. 4,853/- was filed in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and Rs. 300/- of this amount was transferred to the petitioner's account. The Bank was directed by Gujarat Cyber Crime to freeze the account. The Bank had repeatedly communicated with Gujarat Police to unfreeze the account, but received no response.

Key Issues

1. Whether the High Court, in its writ jurisdiction, can direct the respondent-Bank to unfreeze the petitioner's bank account, considering the alleged involvement of the account in a cybercrime complaint filed in Gujarat? Petitioner's Arguments: The petitioner argued that he is a law-abiding citizen, pays GST, and the freezing of his account, which only received Rs. 300/- allegedly from cyber fraud, is causing severe hardship and jeopardizing his business. He sought a direction for the bank to unfreeze his account. Revenue/State's Arguments: The State was represented by counsel but no specific arguments were recorded on their behalf. The Bank of Baroda argued that it acted bonafidely upon the instructions of the Gujarat Police and had made multiple attempts to get a response from the police regarding unfreezing the account, but to no avail. They contended that they were directed to freeze the account instead of placing a lien on the disputed amount.