Supreme Court Moots Penal Definition For Digital Arrests As Standalone Offence
Supreme Court has been informed that a draft bill is coming up to address such issues.
Supreme Court hears suo motu case on rising ‘digital arrest’ scams
The Supreme Court today observed if there should be a formal definition for digital arrest in penal laws as a standalone offence with serious consequences.
"Do you have to define formally the case of digital arrest in penal laws. It has elements of extortion, robbery. Do you need to define this as a standalone offence with serious consequences along with a provision that when something is found against an accused.. his assets will be frozen," CJI Surya Kant asked today in court as the bench heard a suo motu case concerning digital arrest scams.
"We have deepfakes now. It can be used for cheating and impersonation. Under Article 142 we cannot define a crime..," Justice Bagchi added.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told court that there is a draft bill which is coming up which will take care of digital arrests, deepfakes etc. "There was a case now where someone launched a robotic law firm ..where you upload query and answers given. Bar association challenged this..," SG added.
CJI said that he would be issuing directions and listed the matter for further consideration.
In April, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), functioning under the Ministry of Home Affairs, had filed a detailed status report before the Supreme Court outlining sweeping regulatory and enforcement measures being taken to tackle “digital arrest” scams and cyber-enabled financial frauds.
A key highlight of the report is the push for real-time SIM issuance monitoring through a Biometric Identity Verification System (BIVS), which is proposed to be implemented nationwide within nine months. The DoT has also been urged to explore mechanisms for blocking suspicious SIM cards within 2–3 hours, subject to safeguards. On telecom regulation, the report details stricter accountability for Point of Sale (PoS) vendors, AI-based fraud detection systems, and enhanced data sharing between telecom operators and law enforcement agencies.
In February, the Ministry of Home Affairs had filed a status report before Supreme Court of India stating that it has constituted a high-level Inter-Departmental Committee to comprehensively examine all facets of the issue of “Digital Arrest”. It said that the Committee has been constituted under the Chairmanship of the Special Secretary (Internal Security), Ministry of Home Affairs, with representation at the level and above of Joint Secretary officers from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Law & Justice (MoLJ), Ministry of Consumer Affairs (MoCA), Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), National Investigation Agency (NIA), Delhi Police, and the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), with the CEO, I4C acting as Member-Secretary.
The Committee was formed post Supreme Court's order flagging the urgent need for coordinated institutional safeguards to curb the rising menace of “digital arrest” scams, stressing immediate preventive mechanisms and victim-centric recovery frameworks.
Earlier, Court had issued interim directions to strengthen the hands of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in investigation of digital arrest scams. "CBI shall have a free hand to investigate the role of bankers under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act wherever they are found involved in opening of mule accounts used in cyber crime cases", the Court had said.
On October 17, 2025 the Supreme Court had taken suo motu cognisance of the alarming surge in ‘digital arrest’ scams. While taking note of the complaint, the Court had observed that the case discloses a pattern of organised cybercrime targeting senior citizens. Between September 1 and 16, multiple victims were contacted through WhatsApp and video calls, shown forged Supreme Court orders, and threatened with arrest under fabricated proceedings. The victims, under duress, transferred about Rs.1.5 crore through multiple transactions. Calling for stern and coordinated action at the national level, the Court issued notice to the Union of India (through the MHA Secretary), the CBI Director, the State of Haryana, and the Cyber Crime Department, Ambala.
Case Title: In Re: Victims of Digital Arrest Related to Forged Documents
Bench: CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Mohana
Hearing Date: July 28, 2026