The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to formally adopt and implement nationwide the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on January 2, 2026. The directive aims to strengthen inter-agency coordination in tackling cyber-enabled fraud, including efforts to trace and identify the locations of victims.
The court also ordered that the required rules for the implementation be notified within two weeks.
In this regard, the Court observed that the Reserve Bank of India has already issued a standard operating procedure permitting banks to impose temporary debit freezes on accounts as a precautionary measure to prevent cyber-related fraud.
While hearing the suo motu proceedings on digital arrest scams on Monday, the apex court also flagged that negligence and active collusion by bank officials have played a role in such fraudulent transactions.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, with Justice Joymalya Bagchi, emphasised that banks must be subjected to strict accountability standards when dealing with cases of cyber-related fraud.
“We have seen bank officials are completely hand in gloves with the accused in these cases of digital arrest,” CJI Kant noted while hearing the matter.
The Bench also issued directions to strengthen coordination among enforcement agencies and regulators. It instructed the CBI to identify cases involving digital arrests, directed the RBI to take necessary action at the level of issuing banks, and asked the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to ensure that intermediaries comply within stipulated timelines.
As a part of measures to address digital arrest cases, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) and a standard operating protocol (SOP) have been made, the court was informed during the hearing.
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