While dismissing the bail applications of four accused in a Rs 22 crore digital arrest scam case, the Delhi High Court has held that every player participating in such a scam plays a pivotal role. The High Court also highlighted that such offences not only erode public trust and confidence but also impact the entire society.

While considering the bail applications, the High Court noted that in such cases, the modus operandi is complex and complicated.

The Single Bench of Justice Manoj Jain stated, “The offence in question is an organized crime, having massive societal impact.”

“Every player, participating in a scam related to digital arrest, plays pivotal role, in one way or the other”, it added.

Advocate Mohit Chaudhary represented the Petitioner while Advocate Anupam S.Sharrma represented the Respondent.

Factual Background

The complainant alleged that he received a call on his landline from some unknown fraudsters who impersonated as Airtel officials. They told him that his Aadhaar credentials had been used for opening a fraudulent bank account in Mumbai and threatened to suspend his telecom and internet services unless he consented to being connected with the Mumbai Police. Believing the call to be a genuine one, he agreed, and then he was instructed to shift to a WhatsApp video call. During the video call, the fraudsters introduced themselves as CBI officials and told him that he was involved in a Rs 1,300 crore bank fraud. He was confronted with an arrest warrant and apprised that he was involved in terror funding. He was allegedly subjected to continuous psychological coercion, and was compelled to make multiple transfers to numerous accounts.

The transfers made between August 4, 2025, and September 4, 2025, were, as alleged, involuntary in nature, done under sustained duress and coercion. The total transferred amount was Rs 22.92 crore. The amount landed in various banks. This incident of cyber fraud and digital arrest was reported to the police, which resulted in registration of the FIR under Section 308, 318(4), 319, 340 of Bharatiya Nayaya Sanhita, 2023. The High Court was dealing with the bail applications of the applicants Ashok Kumar, Mohit, Vipul Rana and Himanshu.

Reasoning

Considering that the matter at hand pertained to digital arrest, the Bench stated that these matters have to be dealt with extra sensitivity and a different approach as these offences not only erode the public trust and confidence but also impact the entire Society.

The Bench further stated, “Hon’ble Supreme Court, while taking suo moto cognisance, observed that there can indeed be no manner of doubt that every type of cybercrime resulting in victim deception, especially involving senior citizens, required specialized investigation. It supplemented that digital arrest scams clearly demanded the urgent attention of the country’s leading investigative agencies and accordingly, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was directed to be the primary agency to investigate cases reporting digital arrest scams.”

Coming to the facts of the case, the Bench noted that the money cheated was yet to be recovered and the applicant Mohit could not seek bail, merely for the reason that a chargesheet had been filed. The Bench found that the amount of Rs 1.9 crore landed in his account in terms of a tacit understanding in furtherance of the conspiracy. It also moved out of his account in terms of conspiracy. Moreover, his account was in receipt of another sum of Rs. 3.21 crores, which indicated that others, too, had been cheated.

The Bench further found that the accused Vipul also tried to mislead the police by claiming that he remained in Delhi at the relevant time. As per CCTV footage and his CDR, he was present with his co-accused at a hotel in Noida at the relevant time. “His custodial interrogation would, thus, be imperative to reach the truth and to unveil the conspiracy. Similarly, accused Himanshu needs to be interrogated thoroughly as his presence at the Hotel at the relevant time stands established, but he has yet not provided his mobile device. Digital evidence is fragile by nature and can be easily manipulated and destructed and, therefore, custody of Vipul Rana and Himanshu looks indispensable”, it stated.

The Bench was of the view that the applicants could not be dubbed as victims, minor players or mere holders or providers of mule accounts, and they appeared to be important cogs of the conspirational wheel. “Any compassion to the applicants, at this stage, may hamper the ongoing investigation, which has been recently taken over by CBI”, it added.

The Bench thus dismissed all four bail applications.

Cause Title: Ashok Kumar v. State of NCT of Delhi (Neutral Citation: 2026:DHC:3358)

Appearance

Petitioner: Advocates Mohit Chaudhary, Kunal Sachdeva, Lakshay Yadav

Respondent: Advocates Anupam S.Sharrma, Abhiyant Singh, Vashisht Rao, Amisha P. Dash, Nupur Sharma, Manan P., Apurva Gaur, Mohit Kumar Bansal Priya Tripathi

Click here to read/download Order


Delhi High CourtJustice Manoj Jain

Tulip Kanth

Assistant Editor

Tulip Kanth is an Assistant Editor at Verdictum having over 5 years of experience in the field of legal journalism and editing. She extensively covers judgments of the Supreme Court, High Courts as well as Tribunals. She has previously worked with a legal publishing website where she oversaw the work of other editors and has also created updates on notifications of different Government Ministries. She holds an English Honours Degree from SGTB Khalsa College, Delhi University and has completed her LLB course with specialisation in Corporate Law from Amity University.