HC grants major relief, allows both accounts to be operated; only Rs 25k will be held in bank a/c

Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has granted significant relief to petitioner Vipin Gupta in the case of the Jharkhand Cyber ​​Police freezing his bank accounts citing a suspicious transaction of Rs. 25,000. The court prima facie held that the police’s request to freeze the petitioner’s bank accounts lacked sufficient grounds. During the hearing, the bank clarified that the disputed Rs. 25,000 amount was never deposited in any of the petitioner’s bank accounts.

The matter concerns the petitioner’s savings bank account and current account held at the GTB Nagar branch of Canara Bank in Kareli, Prayagraj. The bank had frozen both accounts on the instructions of the Cyber ​​Crime Police Station of East Singhbhum, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.

Advocate Nitish Kumar Soni, representing the petitioner, argued before the court that the Rs. 25,000 amount, which was claimed as proceeds of crime and processed in bank accounts, was never deposited in any of the petitioner’s bank accounts. Furthermore, the relevant Paytm account, mobile number, and KYC details mentioned in the police documents do not belong to the petitioner.

During the hearing, the counsel representing Canara Bank informed the court that the accounts were frozen in compliance with police instructions, but verification of bank records revealed that the disputed amount of Rs. 25,000 was neither deposited in the petitioner’s savings bank account nor in his current account. Following this clear statement from the bank, a division bench of Justice J.J. Munir and Justice Vivek Saran observed, prima facie, that there appeared to be no sufficient basis for the police to freeze the petitioner’s bank accounts. The court stayed the operation of the Jharkhand Cyber ​​Police’s account freezing orders until further orders, allowing the petitioner to continue operating both his bank accounts. The court directed that the bank would hold only Rs. 25,000 in the petitioner’s savings bank account. Furthermore, there would be no restrictions on the balances and regular banking transactions in both accounts. The court directed all concerned parties to file their responses within two weeks. The matter has been listed for order on August 3, 2026. Advocate Nitish Kumar Soni argued on behalf of petitioner Vipin Gupta.