Rajasthan HC: banks to freeze only disputed amount, not whole account, in cyber cases
The Rajasthan High Court on 6 November 2026 directed Rajasthan Gramin Bank to keep only the disputed amount frozen in a customer's account and let the customer use the remaining balance.
Key points
- The Rajasthan High Court directed Rajasthan Gramin Bank to freeze only the disputed amount in an account frozen over a police cyber-crime case.
- If the bank does not know the disputed amount, it must ask the police, who must tell it within seven days of the bank's letter.
- Account holders whose entire account is frozen over one disputed credit may be able to use the rest of their balance.
The Rajasthan High Court at Jodhpur on 6 November 2026 directed Rajasthan Gramin Bank to keep only the disputed amount frozen in a customer's account, instead of the whole account, and to let the customer transact from the remaining balance. The account had been frozen after a police cyber-crime complaint about a transfer into it.
What Happened
A customer from Sri Ganganagar, whose savings account had been frozen on the basis of a disputed transaction, asked the court to quash the freeze and declare the freezing of the entire account illegal. The police station named in the petition is in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
The court disposed of the petition with directions. The bank must keep the disputed amount frozen, which the order describes as the amount transferred illegally into the account, and allow the customer to use the rest of the balance.
If the bank does not know the exact disputed amount, which the police allege is linked to the offence, it must write to the investigating officer, with a copy of the court's order, asking how much should be marked for lien. A lien is a hold that blocks only that sum. The police must tell the bank within seven days of receiving the letter. The court made clear that the bank must act on its order even if the police do not reply.
The same judge passed orders in the same terms in three other petitions on 5 November 2026, against The Mehsana Urban Cooperative Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Indian Overseas Bank.
The cyber-crime case is still under police investigation. These are allegations, not findings of guilt; the accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court, and due process continues.
What It Means
Many account holders find their entire account blocked after a police request over a single disputed credit. These orders show the court limiting the freeze to the amount in dispute, with a seven-day deadline for the police to name it, so that the rest of the balance can be used.
Victims of online fraud can report it at https://cybercrime.gov.in or on helpline 1930.
Source: High Court judgment
Sources & Citations
- High Court judgment — Rajasthan High Court