Jabalpur/Bhopal, July 15 (IANS) The Madhya Pradesh High Court has directed the Directors General of Police of Assam, West Bengal and Jharkhand to appear in person on July 21 while hearing a petition related to a Rs 6.24 lakh cyber fraud, saying prompt coordination is essential for effective investigation of such offences.
A bench of Justice Himanshu Joshi on Tuesday also ordered that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) be impleaded as parties to assist the court in the matter.
The case relates to a petition filed by Chaitali Mitra, a retired bank employee from Jabalpur, who alleged that she was cheated of Rs 6.24 lakh by fraudsters on the pretext of updating her credit card.
She approached the High Court after claiming that no effective action was taken despite lodging complaints with the local police.
Observing that “every second is important” in cybercrime investigations, the court said delays in collecting technical information and coordinating with agencies across states often allow the accused to escape.
In compliance with an earlier order, Jabalpur Superintendent of Police Sampat Upadhyay, Cyber Police Station in-charge Bhupendra Armo and Gora Bazar police station in-charge Sanjeev Kumar Tripathi appeared before the court.
The SP submitted that the complaint was immediately referred to the cyber police, but obtaining information from banks and their nodal officers generally takes three to five days.
He said investigations also require assistance from police in other states, leading to further delays.
The police informed the court that cybercriminals were using bank accounts opened in the names of unsuspecting persons and encrypted platforms such as Telegram to avoid detection. They said investigators have to obtain IP logs, subscriber details and other technical information from multiple agencies, by which time the accused often withdraw the money, change locations and destroy electronic evidence.
The court was also informed that the main suspect had been traced to Assam.
On the petitioner’s request, the High Court impleaded the Assam DGP as a respondent, according to the police.
The bench directed that copies of its order be supplied to the standing counsel for the Union government and the RBI for necessary instructions before the next hearing.
The High Court directed the DGPs of Assam, West Bengal and Jharkhand to remain personally present on July 21 with status reports on the investigation. The matter will be heard further on that day.
–IANS
pd/dpb
