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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
M.NIRMAL KUMAR
V-Mart Retail Limited – Appellant
Versus
Nodal Cyber Cell Officer of Tamil Nadu – Respondent
ORDER :
1. This Writ Petition has been filed to direct the respondents 1 and 2 to forthwith de-freeze the petitioner's Account bearing A/c. No. 5750000016614 maintained by the petitioner with the 3rd respondent Bank, which was frozen at the instance of the 2nd respondent pursuant to the registration of complaint in C.No.37/CCB/COP/Visitors/2025 and NCRP.No.32901250002138.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner viz. M/s.V-Mart Retail Limited is a publicly listed company engaged in the business of value fashion retail and FMCG Goods, operating more than 400 stores across India. It is a registered under the Companies Act. The company for his business purpose was having bank account with the 3rd respondent Bank in A/c. No. 5750000016614 and exclusively maintained for the purpose of collecting customer payments via UPI and Card transaction. On 06.05.2025, the 3rd respondent Bank had imposed a complete “debit freeze” on the petitioner's bank account since the 2nd respondent registered a case in C.No.37/CCB/COP/Visitors/2025 and NCRP No. 32901250002138. This account is an non-operational pass-through account used solely for inward remittances from retail custom
The freezing of a business account requires identification of the tainted amount to ensure proportionality, and blanket freezes violate constitutional protections against arbitrary state action.
Bank to defreeze account retaining lien over disputed cyber fraud amount, permitting operations.
The Investigating Officer lacks authority under Section 91 of Cr.P.C. to freeze a bank account absent compliance with Section 102, violating procedural requirements and the petitioner's rights.
Freezing an entire bank account without evidence linking the account holder to a crime violates the right to livelihood; only specific amounts should be frozen with proper justification.
The court emphasized that allegations of fraud must be substantiated in a Trial Court, preserving the procedural integrity while allowing the petitioners to seek relief through appropriate legal chan....
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