High Court · 2025

Hon'ble Ashutosh Srivastava,J. Heard Sri Mohit Singh, learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Yagvalkya Pandey, learned AGA for the State-Respondent and perused the record. The present bail application has been moved on behalf of accused- applicant, Amresh Kumar Singh seeking enlargement on bail in Case Crime No. 38 of 2024, under Sections 318(4), 308(2), 61(2) of the B.N.S. and Section 66-D of I.T. Act, Police Station Cyber Crime, District Aligarh. Brief facts of the case are that the informant is a retired professor from Aligarh University and she lives alone in a flat and her Mobile Numbers are 9358258110 and 9219451791. On 28.09.2024 at around 11:51 AM, the informant received a call from phone number 9580729560 on her Mobile Number 9358258110 informing her that her number is being shut down and obtained all the information about the informant. Then at around 11:57 AM, the informant received another call from phone number 00918680232927 on her Mobile Number 9358258110. The caller alleged that a lot of wrong activity is happening from her phone and that the phone would be shut down. The caller required the informant to report to the Police. The informant expressed her inability to report the matter. On this the caller stated that he will connect the informant to the Police Station. On the same day at around 12:32 PM, a WhatsApp video call came on the informant's Mobile Number 9219451791 from Mobile Number 7470896878 in the name of Mumbai Police. The caller stated that many Bank Accounts have been opened using the informant's Aadhar Card and a case has also been registered against the informant. The caller asked for informant's Aadhar Card which the informant sent on WhatsApp. After that the caller sent an information about the case on the informant's WhatsApp and said that a person named Naresh Goyal has been arrested in the money laundering case. The informant has helped in opening the Bank Account and transacting money. The informant's statement of the alleged account from the Mumbai Branch of Canara Bank was also sent on which the informant is stated to receive money and investigation is going on. As per the Supreme Court's order the informant was asked to keep everything confidential under the Official Secrets Act else the informant would be jailed for 6 months. The caller further stated that Mumbai Police would take informant to Mumbai and that she would not be allowed to meet anyone there for 6 months. Informant was informed that men are also monitoring her residence. The caller also took an undertaking from the informant to keep everything confidential. After some conversation, the caller asked the informant to deposit the money and asked her to continue the video call the whole time. On 30.09.2024, the informant went to the bank and transferred Rs. 37 Lakhs to Bank Account Number 1214729240 and to the Bank Account Number 259102657480 mentioned by him. Then the caller sent the receipt of receiving Rs. 37 Lakhs on the informant's WhatsApp. In the same way, Rs. 25 Lakhs were transferred on 01.10.2024 and Rs. 5 Lakhs on 03.10.2024, the receipt of which were sent by him on the informant's WhatsApp. After that, the caller asked the informant to take a loan on the gold she was wearing and give the money. The informant took a loan of Rs. 2,06,000/- from the State Bank of India and transferred Rs. 8 Lakhs on 07.10.2024. He sent the receipt of Rs. 8 Lakhs to the informant on her WhatsApp. When the informant contacted him on WhatsApp on 09.10.2024, he could not be contacted. Then the informant realized that she has been cheated. Then the informant told everything to her brother Javed Aftab. Then the informant came to know that she has been cyber-cheated. These people have cheated the informant by using her name in the money laundering case and by threatening and intimidating her, they have defrauded her of Rs. 75 Lakhs by hatching a conspiracy. Learned counsel for the applicant argued that the accused- applicant is innocent and he has been falsely implicated in this case crime number. It is argued that Laptop, PC and Chip etc. are required for the applicant/accused to run public service, which are present during the business of the applicant/accused and the recovery for the same has been shown by the Police. The accused/applicant came to know through Facebook from Sarthak of Banaras and he advised him to join the WhatsApp group and said that I am also connected to this group. Hulk, Sanjay Tiwari, Jeff of Mumbai, Dinesh etc. were connected in the said group and the admin of the group was Kaurlian, Sarthak advised the applicant/accused that Hayas Group operates from Saudi Arabia and we buy shares of different companies which generates income of Crores of Rupees and we have a percentage share in the income. We contact different people and take commission from them and invest the remaining amount in the market and they also earn money by buying shares. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant was not informed about the grounds of arrest either orally or in writing which is in violation of Article 22(1) of the Constitution of India read with Section 50 Cr.P.C./Section 47 B.N.S.S. He submits that the applicant runs a Jan Seva Kendra and entered into a business with Sarthak. As per business, the applicant facilitated the on-boarding of new individuals for bank account openings, credit card applications, loan applications and money transfers. The applicant received a commission for these services through Sarthak. He further submits that the money received in the bank account of the applicant was for routine transactions and the applicant had no knowledge that the funds were linked to fraud. He submits that there is no evidence that the applicant was aware of the fraudulent activity except for his alleged confessional statement. He further submits that all the transactions were conducted through legal banking channels rather than in cash. If the applicant had any ill intent or malicious intent he would not have used his own bank account to facilitate such alleged fraudulent activity. The applicant is languishing in jail since 04.01.2025. The applicant has no criminal antecedent and there is no likelihood of his fleeing from course of justice or tampering with evidence in case of release on bail. Hence, the bail has been prayed for. Per contra, learned A.G.A. has supported the order passed by the Sessions Court and vehemently opposed the prayer for grant of bail to the applicant and submits that the allegations involved are very serious in nature and the delay in lodging the F.I.R. cannot be said to be fatal to the case at this juncture while considering the application of bail. He further submits that the investigation is going on and evidence are yet to come. He further submits that in case the applicant is released on bail, he will again indulge in similar activities and will misuse the liberty of bail. It is a settled law that while granting bail, the court has to keep in mind the nature of accusation, the nature of the evidence in support thereof, the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail, the character of the accused, the circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, his role and involvement in the offence, his involvement in other cases and reasonable apprehension of the witnesses being tampered with. This Court finds that in India, the rapid advancement of technology and the widespread adoption of digital infrastructure have led to a significant rise in cyber-crimes including phishing scams, ransomware attacks, cyber-stalking and data breaches. Initiatives like Digital India have accelerated the country's' digital transformation, but they have also exposed vulnerabilities that cyber-criminals exploit. Cyber-crime has been affecting the people across the nation, irrespective of religion, region, education or class. Newspapers, Magazines, You Tube Channels and Social Media are brimming with ordeals of an uncountable number of innocent victim of the cyber-crime, who are defrauded of their hard earned money. Such cyber-crimes are rampant in our society, and must be curbed. Cyber-crime in our country is like a silent virus stealthy, disruptive, and costing society more than just money, but trust, security and progress. In view of the above, the Court is not inclined to release the applicant on bail. The bail application is, accordingly, rejected. Order Date :- 20.5.2025 PAWAN KUMAR SINGH High Court of Judicature at Allahabad

Hon'ble Ashutosh Srivastava,J. Heard Sri Mohit Singh, learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Yagvalkya Pandey, learned AGA for the State-Respondent and perused the record. The present bail application has been moved on behalf of accused- applicant, Amresh Kumar Singh seeking enlargement on bail in Case Crime No. 38 of 2024, under Sections 318(4), 308(2), 61(2) of the B.N.S. and Section 66-D of I.T. Act, Police Station Cyber Crime, District Aligarh. Brief facts of the case are that the informant is a retired professor from Aligarh University and she lives alone in a flat and her Mobile Numbers are 9358258110 and 9219451791. On 28.09.2024 at around 11:51 AM, the informant received a call from phone number 9580729560 on her Mobile Number 9358258110 informing her that her number is being shut down and obtained all the information about the informant. Then at around 11:57 AM, the informant received another call from phone number 00918680232927 on her Mobile Number 9358258110. The caller alleged that a lot of wrong activity is happening from her phone and that the phone would be shut down. The caller required the informant to report to the Police. The informant expressed her inability to report the matter. On this the caller stated that he will connect the informant to the Police Station. On the same day at around 12:32 PM, a WhatsApp video call came on the informant's Mobile Number 9219451791 from Mobile Number 7470896878 in the name of Mumbai Police. The caller stated that many Bank Accounts have been opened using the informant's Aadhar Card and a case has also been registered against the informant. The caller asked for informant's Aadhar Card which the informant sent on WhatsApp. After that the caller sent an information about the case on the informant's WhatsApp and said that a person named Naresh Goyal has been arrested in the money laundering case. The informant has helped in opening the Bank Account and transacting money. The informant's statement of the alleged account from the Mumbai Branch of Canara Bank was also sent on which the informant is stated to receive money and investigation is going on. As per the Supreme Court's order the informant was asked to keep everything confidential under the Official Secrets Act else the informant would be jailed for 6 months. The caller further stated that Mumbai Police would take informant to Mumbai and that she would not be allowed to meet anyone there for 6 months. Informant was informed that men are also monitoring her residence. The caller also took an undertaking from the informant to keep everything confidential. After some conversation, the caller asked the informant to deposit the money and asked her to continue the video call the whole time. On 30.09.2024, the informant went to the bank and transferred Rs. 37 Lakhs to Bank Account Number 1214729240 and to the Bank Account Number 259102657480 mentioned by him. Then the caller sent the receipt of receiving Rs. 37 Lakhs on the informant's WhatsApp. In the same way, Rs. 25 Lakhs were transferred on 01.10.2024 and Rs. 5 Lakhs on 03.10.2024, the receipt of which were sent by him on the informant's WhatsApp. After that, the caller asked the informant to take a loan on the gold she was wearing and give the money. The informant took a loan of Rs. 2,06,000/- from the State Bank of India and transferred Rs. 8 Lakhs on 07.10.2024. He sent the receipt of Rs. 8 Lakhs to the informant on her WhatsApp. When the informant contacted him on WhatsApp on 09.10.2024, he could not be contacted. Then the informant realized that she has been cheated. Then the informant told everything to her brother Javed Aftab. Then the informant came to know that she has been cyber-cheated. These people have cheated the informant by using her name in the money laundering case and by threatening and intimidating her, they have defrauded her of Rs. 75 Lakhs by hatching a conspiracy. Learned counsel for the applicant argued that the accused- applicant is innocent and he has been falsely implicated in this case crime number. It is argued that Laptop, PC and Chip etc. are required for the applicant/accused to run public service, which are present during the business of the applicant/accused and the recovery for the same has been shown by the Police. The accused/applicant came to know through Facebook from Sarthak of Banaras and he advised him to join the WhatsApp group and said that I am also connected to this group. Hulk, Sanjay Tiwari, Jeff of Mumbai, Dinesh etc. were connected in the said group and the admin of the group was Kaurlian, Sarthak advised the applicant/accused that Hayas Group operates from Saudi Arabia and we buy shares of different companies which generates income of Crores of Rupees and we have a percentage share in the income. We contact different people and take commission from them and invest the remaining amount in the market and they also earn money by buying shares. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant was not informed about the grounds of arrest either orally or in writing which is in violation of Article 22(1) of the Constitution of India read with Section 50 Cr.P.C./Section 47 B.N.S.S. He submits that the applicant runs a Jan Seva Kendra and entered into a business with Sarthak. As per business, the applicant facilitated the on-boarding of new individuals for bank account openings, credit card applications, loan applications and money transfers. The applicant received a commission for these services through Sarthak. He further submits that the money received in the bank account of the applicant was for routine transactions and the applicant had no knowledge that the funds were linked to fraud. He submits that there is no evidence that the applicant was aware of the fraudulent activity except for his alleged confessional statement. He further submits that all the transactions were conducted through legal banking channels rather than in cash. If the applicant had any ill intent or malicious intent he would not have used his own bank account to facilitate such alleged fraudulent activity. The applicant is languishing in jail since 04.01.2025. The applicant has no criminal antecedent and there is no likelihood of his fleeing from course of justice or tampering with evidence in case of release on bail. Hence, the bail has been prayed for. Per contra, learned A.G.A. has supported the order passed by the Sessions Court and vehemently opposed the prayer for grant of bail to the applicant and submits that the allegations involved are very serious in nature and the delay in lodging the F.I.R. cannot be said to be fatal to the case at this juncture while considering the application of bail. He further submits that the investigation is going on and evidence are yet to come. He further submits that in case the applicant is released on bail, he will again indulge in similar activities and will misuse the liberty of bail. It is a settled law that while granting bail, the court has to keep in mind the nature of accusation, the nature of the evidence in support thereof, the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail, the character of the accused, the circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, his role and involvement in the offence, his involvement in other cases and reasonable apprehension of the witnesses being tampered with. This Court finds that in India, the rapid advancement of technology and the widespread adoption of digital infrastructure have led to a significant rise in cyber-crimes including phishing scams, ransomware attacks, cyber-stalking and data breaches. Initiatives like Digital India have accelerated the country's' digital transformation, but they have also exposed vulnerabilities that cyber-criminals exploit. Cyber-crime has been affecting the people across the nation, irrespective of religion, region, education or class. Newspapers, Magazines, You Tube Channels and Social Media are brimming with ordeals of an uncountable number of innocent victim of the cyber-crime, who are defrauded of their hard earned money. Such cyber-crimes are rampant in our society, and must be curbed. Cyber-crime in our country is like a silent virus stealthy, disruptive, and costing society more than just money, but trust, security and progress. In view of the above, the Court is not inclined to release the applicant on bail. The bail application is, accordingly, rejected. Order Date :- 20.5.2025 PAWAN KUMAR SINGH High Court of Judicature at Allahabad