Ambala Digital Arrest Case: SC Takes Suo Motu Cognisance; Advocate Virag Gupta Calls For Urgent Cybercrime Reforms

The Supreme Court on Friday has issued notice to the Centre, Central Bureau of Investigation, Haryana Government, and Ambala Cyber Crime Cell over suo motu proceedings initiated based on complaint by a senior citizen couple, who was defrauded of ₹1.5 crore by cyber fraudsters impersonating CBI officials.

The top court bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi sought a status report on the probe into the matter.  The Court also asked the Attorney General R Venkataramani to assist in the case.

The SC expressed serious concern that the fraudsters used forged Court orders, bearing fake judicial signatures, fabricated legal documents to manipulate the victims. 

The bench noted: ‘This is a direct assault on the dignity of the judiciary.’ 

The bench observed: ‘It strikes at the foundation of the rule of law and severely erode public trust in legal institutions.’

The bench noted that this is not an isolated incident and pointed to similar scams being reported from across the country, calling for strict action.

Reacting to this, Supreme Court advocate Virag Gupta, in an exclusive conversation with iTV network, said the scam highlights serious systemic gaps in how India handles cybercrimes.

Advocate Gupta said: ‘Despite a rise in digital frauds, cybercrimes are under-reported in the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data.’

He said: ‘Poor coordination between central and state agencies, along with the absence of a centralised cybercrime authority, severely weakening the country’s ability to effectively tackle digital frauds.’

Gupta said the absence of a robust data protection law, noting that citizens’ personal data like Aadhaar, PAN, and bank details is easily exploited by criminals. 

He criticised the lack of cooperation from tech platforms and banks in such cases. 

He said: ‘Without urgent reforms and accountability, digital scams will only become more frequent and dangerous.’

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