HC flags surge in frauds based on fake claims of influence with higher-ups

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has flagged the alarming rise in crimes where agents and touts cheat gullible citizens by falsely claiming links with high-ranking authorities. Describing such frauds as a convenient route to amass illegal wealth overnight, Justice Sandeep Moudgil asserted that these offences were required to be dealt with firmly and decisively.

The assertion came as Justice Moudgil refused anticipatory bail to a man in a cheating and criminal breach of trust case registered under Sections 420 and 406 of the IPC at a police station in Panipat district. The complainant in the case had alleged that payment for acquittal of his relatives. The petitioner-accused had contended that he had only accompanied his father—a co-accused in the case—to the complainant’s house for collecting money. It was not handed over to him and he did not play a direct role in the commissioning of offence.

Justice Moudgil observed that such rackets, often orchestrated outside the regulatory net, had become disturbingly frequent in recent years and required a stringent judicial response. “Crimes involving fake promises of having links with the higher authorities have reached alarming proportions in recent years. These frauds are frequently orchestrated by agents and touts who operate outside the regulatory net…. This court is conscious of the growing prevalence of such rackets and the urgent need to adopt a stringent approach to deter such conduct,” Justice Moudgil asserted.

The judgment comes amid growing concerns over the exploitation of public faith in the judicial process through deceptive assurances of influence. It is significant as the court has made it clear that the issue requires immediate and decisive intervention.

Referring to high court and the apex court judgments, Justice Moudgil asserted the crime of cheating, duping and fraud was rampant in the society and often adopted by fraudsters and unscrupulous persons. “This has become a cakewalk to amass wealth illegally overnight which needs to be curbed with an iron hand to save the innocent people. The court asserted that custodial interrogation was necessary to unearth the full extent of the conspiracy and trace the defrauded amount. It clarified that readiness to join the investigation did not entitle the petitioner to anticipatory bail where allegations of serious fraud were involved. “In light of the gravity of the offences and the modus operandi adopted, this is not a fit case for extending the extraordinary concession of anticipatory bail,” Justice Moudgil asserted.

Haryana Tribune