New Delhi: In a landmark order that promises to dismantle the frightening new wave of “digital arrest” frauds, the Supreme Court has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take over the investigation of all such cases across the country.
A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant expressed shock at how fraudsters, posing as law enforcement officials, are keeping victims under virtual house arrest for hours – and sometimes days – through video calls, extorting crores by threatening arrest in fabricated money-laundering or customs cases.
“These are not ordinary cybercrimes anymore. Victims are psychologically imprisoned in their own homes,” the court observed, transferring every pending and future digital arrest case to the CBI for a coordinated, pan-India probe.
The order came on a PIL highlighting that over ₹1,400 crore has already been syphoned off in the last two years through this modus operandi, with call centres operating from Myanmar, Cambodia and even some Indian states.
The bench also pulled up state police forces for poor coordination and asked the Ministry of Home Affairs to immediately set up a national task force under CBI to trace the money trail and arrest masterminds hiding abroad.
Victim support groups have hailed the verdict as a game-changer. “Finally, someone has recognised digital arrest as modern-day kidnapping,” said a cybercrime activist present in court.
With the CBI now at the helm, the days of imposters in police uniforms terrorising citizens over WhatsApp and Zoom may finally be numbered.