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New Delhi, Feb 9: In a bid to crack down on the rising menace of “digital arrests”, the Ministry of Home Affairs has informed the Supreme Court that it has constituted a high-level inter-departmental committee to eliminate systemic gaps and ensure real-time protection for cybercrime victims.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant on December 16, 2025 ordered inter-departmental ministerial consultations under the guidance of Attorney General R Venkataramani on the issue and apprised it of the outcome.
The bench further directed that the recommendations made by the Amicus Curiae should also be considered by the concerned quarters alongside the directions already issued on December 1 last year.
The status report filed by the MHA on January 12 detailed a multi-agency offensive involving the CBI, RBI, Telecom Department and top IT ministries to dismantle transnational syndicates using forged documents and “digital arrest” tactics to siphon funds from innocent citizens.
Acting on the directions of the bench, the report said the CBI has officially taken over the investigation into a high-profile fraud case of Delhi where the victim, a 76-year-old widowed pensioner, was allegedly duped of Rs 1.64 crore through a “digital arrest” scam where she was threatened by impersonators using fake documents.
The CBI informed the court that these scams are often perpetrated by organised and transnational cybercrime syndicates and that the agency is now utilising INTERPOL channels to dismantle international modules.
The MHA has established an IDC under the chairmanship of the special secretary (internal security). The panel includes joint secretary-level officers from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Department of Telecommunications, Reserve Bank of India, Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre.
It said the committee is mandated to identify legislative gaps, suggest corrective measures and ensure time-bound compliance across the banking and telecom sectors.
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