New Delhi: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on October 27 its suo motu matter on victims of digital arrest who are defrauded using forged documents, according to the court's cause list reported by PTI. The petition, titled 'In Re: victims of digital arrest related to forged documents', will come up before a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi on Monday.
Source: PTI, via TaxTMI
The court had taken cognisance of a case in which a senior citizen couple in Ambala, Haryana, was allegedly placed under digital arrest on the basis of forged orders of the court and probe agencies, and fraudsters extorted Rs 1.05 crore from them, Amar Ujala reported carrying the PTI report. The bench has sought responses from the Centre, the CBI and others, and has requested Attorney General R. Venkataramani to assist it.
Source: PTI, via Amar Ujala English
Hearing the matter on October 17, the top court observed that, prima facie, stern action on a pan-India basis with coordinated efforts between central and state police was required to unearth the full extent of the criminal enterprise involving forgery of judicial documents, cyber extortion and cyber arrest of innocent people, especially senior citizens. Such offences strike at the 'very foundation' of public trust in the judicial system, it said.
'We are, however, aghast at the fact that the fraudsters fabricated judicial orders in the name of the Supreme Court of India and various other documents,' the bench had said, adding that fabrication of judicial orders bearing forged signatures of judges was a matter of grave concern and a direct assault on the dignity of the institution, and could not be treated as an ordinary offence of cheating or cybercrime.
Digital arrest is a form of cyber fraud in which callers impersonate police, court or agency officials on video calls, claim the victim is accused in a case, and pressure them to transfer money. Police and courts have repeatedly warned that no agency arrests people over a video call or demands money in this manner.