Digital arrest: SC notice to Centre, CBI on petition by ex-banker duped of Rs 23 crore
Cyber fraudsters posing as ED and CBI officials duped Naresh Malhotra of Rs 23 crore by allegedly putting him under 'digital arrest' for almost a month
The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Centre, the CBI and others on a petition filed by a 78-year-old retired banker who was duped of Rs 23 crore after allegedly being put under “digital arrest” for nearly a month.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked the Centre, the CBI, the RBI and others to respond to the petition filed by Naresh Malhotra seeking directions to the banks involved to deposit the defrauded amount of Rs 22.92 crore in his accounts.
Malhotra has made the Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, City Union Bank and Yes Bank parties to the case.
Cyber fraudsters posing as Enforcement Directorate (ED) and CBI officials duped Malhotra, a retired banker from Gulmohar Park area of South Delhi, of Rs 23 crore by allegedly putting him under “digital arrest” for almost a month.
The accused allegedly told Malhotra that his Aadhaar number was involved in narcotics trafficking, terror funding and the Pulwama terror attack, and confined him to his flat under the pretext of investigation.
The victim complained to the police that his ordeal began on August 4, 2025, when he received a call from a man claiming to be a Mumbai Police officer who accused him of being linked to a drug-trafficking racket.
Subsequently, fraudsters impersonating ED and CBI officials also contacted him and Malhotra complied with their demands and kept transferring money from his bank accounts to the accounts specified by the fraudsters who also threatened him of dire consequences if he revealed it to anyone, police alleged.
After realising that he was duped, Malhotra lodged a complaint on the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) on September 19, 2025. Later, the case was transferred to the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit. Police registered an FIR and got Rs 12.11 crore of the cheated amount frozen in various bank accounts.
