Cybercrime like ‘silent virus’, HC refuses bail in Rs 10 lakh fraud case
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that cybercrimes and online fraud erode public confidence in digital financial platforms, threaten national progress towards a “Digital Bharat”, and act like a “silent virus” inflicting damage far beyond monetary loss.
The assertion came as Justice Sumeet Goel called for strict judicial scrutiny in such cases due to their grave nature and capacity to simultaneously harm numerous victims.
Refusing anticipatory bail to an accused in a Rs 10 lakh cyber fraud, Justice Sumeet Goel observed: “Adjudicating the bail pleas, particularly in cases concerning cybercrimes and online fraud, necessitates a meticulous evaluation of several pivotal factors. Paramount among these is the inherent gravity and seriousness of the offence, coupled with its potential societal ramifications.”
He said, “The proliferation of online frauds and cybercrimes poses a significant threat, as it systematically erodes public confidence in digital financial transaction platforms. Such erosion runs counter to the aspirations of an advanced and digitally empowered ‘Digital Bharat’ and thus warrants a heightened degree of judicial circumspection.”
Justice Goel asserted that such offences “are characterised by their capacity to aggrieve a multitude of victims simultaneously, often with a single act of commission,” and that the “deleterious consequences of cybercrimes transcend individual boundaries, imperiling numerous unsuspecting citizens”.
Justice Goel asserted: “The gravity of such transgressions cannot, therefore, be understated. They not only jeopardise the financial security and trust reposed by individuals in financial payment gateways and platforms but also inherently expose the broader populace to analogous threats. Indeed, cybercrime in our nation operates akin to a silent virus — insidious, disruptive, and exacting a toll on society that extends far beyond mere pecuniary loss, encompassing the bedrock of trust, security and national progress.”
Justice Goel asserted that the court found itself disinclined to grant the relief of anticipatory bail. “To do otherwise would be to turn a Nelson’s eye to the profound and far-reaching detrimental impact of these digital depredations,” the Bench ruled.
The observations came on a petition seeking pre-arrest bail in an FIR registered on September 16, 2024. Justice Goel added it prima facie emerged from the record that the petitioner, in connivance with co-accused, was allegedly involved in the commission of cyber financial fraud.
Punjab