Tabssum v. State of Haryana

IN Tabssum

State of H

Date of d Date of U

CORAM Present:

SUMEET

¶1seeking g 2023 in F under Sec 120-B IP District G

¶2of a comp scale fina operated merchants loopholes THE HIGH COURT OF PUN CHANDIG

V/s Haryana

decision: 20.04.2026 Uploading : 20.04.2026 M: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE Mr. Farukh Abdullah, Advoc Mr. Gurmeet Singh, AAG Ha Mr. Sumit Roy, Advocate an Mr. N. Phukan, Advocate for (through Video conference). ***** T GOEL, J. (Oral) Present petition has been grant of anticipatory/pre-arrest b FIR No.183 dated 13.09.2025 r ctions 314, 318(4) and 305(a), 6 PC 1860) of BNS, 2023 at Pol Gurugram. As per the prosecution case, plaint submitted by one Bal Kis ancial fraud involving misuse by MobiKwik. It has been s, in connivance with unkno s in the system to fraudulent

NJAB AND HARYANA AT ARH

CRM-M-12385-2026

....Petitioner

....Respondent SUMEET GOEL cate for the petitioner. aryana. nd r the complainant

filed on behalf of the petition bail under Section 482 of BNS registered for offences punisha 1(2) later on added (403, 420, 3 lice Station Sector 53 Gurugra the FIR was registered on the ba shan on 13.09.2025 alleging larg e of a digital payment platfo n alleged that certain register own persons, exploited techni tly transfer funds exceeding

ner SS, ble 80, am, asis ge-orm red

available transactio complaina loss alleg further in constitute and consp registered

¶3direct or Learned c FIR, are v to the pet prosecutio payment s fraudulen the allege glitch and misapprop counsel h the allege registered the prose allegation further su wallet balance into their respect ons. During internal reconciliat ant company detected suspicious gedly amounting to approximat ncrease upon investigation. Th e offences of cheating, criminal piracy. Based on these set of alle d. Learned counsel for the r has been falsely implicated into indirect involvement in the a counsel has further iterated that vague, general in nature and do titioner. It has been further con on is based on a presumption i.e system of the complainant comp t act committed by the petition ed transactions has occurred d d hence the essential ingredien priation or criminal breach of has emphasized that the FIR itse ed incident came to light on 12.0 d on 13.09.2025 which casts ser cution story. The FIR contain ns without attributing any specifi ubmitted that the investigation

tive bank using QR based and U tion conducted on 12.09.2025, s transactions resulting in wrong tely Rs.40,22,32,210/- which m he aforesaid acts were stated l breach of trust, misappropriati egations, the instant FIR came to petitioner has iterated that o the FIR in question as she has alleged commission of offence( t the allegations, as levelled in not attribute any specific overt ntended that the entire case of e. 'technical loophole' in the digi pany and not on any intentional er. According to learned couns due to system failure or techni nts of offences such as cheatin trust are not made out. Learn elf suffers from delay inasmuch

09.2025 whereas the FIR has be rious doubts on the genuineness s vague, bald and unsubstantia ic role to the petitioner. It has be n in the present case is alrea

UPI gful may to be

(s). act ital l or sel, ical ng, ned h as een s of ted een

complete counsel h children a upon her her family Moreover process o enlarged o anticipato

¶4anticipato the petitio affidavit Gurugram involves resulting complaina and no recovery is to be effe has emphasized that the petition aged about 3.5 years and 5 yea and her arrest would cause undu y. Furthermore, there is no nee r as nothing incriminating rem r, there is no likelihood of th f justice or tampering with the p on pre-arrest bail. On strength ory bail is entreated for. Per contra, learned State c ory bail to the petitioner by argu oner is serious in nature. Referrin of Amit Bhatia, HPS, Assistan m, learned State counsel has a grave and serious economic in wrongful loss amounting ant company. The relevant part "14. Role of the petitioner:

That in so far as the role o present crime is concerned, it is an active role in the commission duly established during the c investigation, the petitioner Taba intention, had exploited the tech MobiKwik and had unlawfully tr from the complainant company maintained with HDFC Bank. wallet credentials to receive and having no legal entitlement over

ected from the petitioner. Learn ner is a woman having two min ars, who are completely depend ue hardship and irreparable harm d for custodial interrogation of mains to be recovered from h e petitioner absconding from prosecution evidence in case she of these submissions, the grant counsel has opposed the grant uing that the offence committed ng to the status report by way of nt Commissioner of Police, Sad submitted that the present ca offence of a very high magnitu g to several hundred crores of the said status report reads thu of the petitioner in the commission of submitted that the petitioner has play n of the present offence, which has b course of investigation. As per assum, with a dishonest and fraudul hnical glitch in the payment system ransferred an amount of Rs.10,79,99 y's wallet into her own bank acco The petitioner knowingly utilized d siphon off the defrauded funds, desp the same, thereby causing wrongful l

ned nor ent m to her. e is t of of by f an dar, ase ude to us: f the ayed een lent m of 90/- ount her pite

seriousnes ongoing i seriously influencin custodial conspirac allegation petition is

4.1. submissio that the a organized regulated connivanc nature of is still un dismissal

¶5gone throu

¶6serious al to the complainant and corresp conduct reflects active participat the digital payment infrastructure that recovery of the duped amou bank account number 501003549 present affidavit as Annexure R1. Learned State counsel has fu ss of the allegations, the mag investigation, the grant of anti prejudice the prosecution case ng witnesses or tampering w interrogation of the petitioner i y and the financial trail. Con ns and the stage of investigat s prayed for. Learned counsel appearing ons in tandem with the State cou llegations against the petitioner d and systematic modus operand digital payment platform ce with other accused persons. offence clearly indicates the exis nder investigation. Accordingly of the petition in hand. I have heard the learned cou ugh the available record of the c As per the case put forth in legations have been levelled aga

ponding wrongful gain to herself. H tion in the larger conspiracy of misus e for fraudulent enrichment, and the f unt is still pending. The copy of HD 979662 is being appended along with " urther submitted that in view of gnitude of financial loss and icipatory bail at this stage wou e and may result in the petition with evidence. Furthermore, is imperative to uncover the ent nsidering the seriousness of ion, the dismissal of the inst for the complainant has rais unsel. Learned counsel has itera are not simple but disclose a w di wherein technical loopholes in were deliberately exploited According to learned counsel, stence of a larger conspiracy wh y, a prayer has been made for unsel for the rival parties and ha case. n the FIR in question, indubitab ainst the petitioner. The allegatio

Her sing fact DFC uld ner tire ant sed ted well n a in ich ave bly,

contained for unlaw indicates opinion o treated at on public technical conclusiv conspirac the larger persons. requires hamper th

¶7for grant fraud, a m paramoun coupled w frauds and public co runs coun "Digital circumspe aggrieve commissi d in the FIR disclose a well-plan wful gain. The amount involved the seriousness and gravity of of this Court, the economic offe par with ordinary offences as th trust. The plea of the petitioner glitch does not persuade this C ely examined at this stage. In y, the custodial interrogation of r network, trace the flow of fun The exact nature and extent of deeper investigation for whic r may be essential. The grant of he investigation. It is befitting to mention her of bail, particularly in cases c meticulous evaluation of severa nt factor is the nature, gravity with its potential societal ramific d cybercrimes poses a significan onfidence in digital financial tra nter to the aspirations of an ad Bharat" and thus warrants a ection. These offences are ch a multitude of victims simultan on. The deleterious consequ

nned and large-scale financial fra d is substantial which prima fa f the offence. In the consider ences of such magnitude cannot hey have far-reaching consequenc r that the instant case is a result o Court as such a defence cannot cases involving digital fraud a ften becomes necessary to unea nds and identify other co-accus f the involvement of the petition ch custodial interrogation of f anticipatory bail at this stage m re that while adjudicating the p oncerning cybercrimes and onl al pivotal factors is necessary. T y and seriousness of the offen cations. The proliferation of onl nt threat, as it systematically erod ansaction platforms. Such erosi dvanced and digitally empower a heightened degree of judic haracterized by their capacity neously, often with a single act ences of cybercrimes transce

aud acie red be ces of a be and arth sed ner may plea ine The nce ine des red cial to t of

individual gravity of only jeop financial broader p operates a society th bedrock o and profo effects on disincline otherwise detriment

¶8stage, fro implicated case, the material p participan payment p in conniv loopholes transactio fraudulen other accu mention h l boundaries, imperiling nume f such transgressions cannot, th pardize the financial security an payment gateways and platform populace to analogous threats. akin to a silent virus — insidious hat extends far beyond mere p of trust, security, and national p ound gravity of such offenses n both society and financial in ed to grant the relief of anticip e would be to turn a Nelson's ey tal impact of these digital depred Moreover, no cause nay plau m which it can be deciphered t d into the present FIR. It goes allegations against the petitione placed on record, are that she is nts in the fraudulent transaction platform of the complainant com vance with other co-accused s in the system to initiate an ons whereby funds in excess of th tly transferred into the bank acc used persons. The investigation here that while considering a ple

erous unsuspecting citizens. T herefore, be understated. They n nd trust reposed by individuals ms but also inherently expose Indeed, cybercrime in our nati s, disruptive, and exacting a toll pecuniary loss, encompassing progress. Given the inherent natu and their wide-ranging cascadi nstitutions, this Court finds its patory bail as prayed for. To ye to the profound and far-reachi dations. usible cause has been shown, at t that the petitioner has been fals without saying that in the inst er, as emerging from the FIR a one of the beneficiaries and act ns carried out through the digi mpany. Furthermore, the petition , knowingly exploited techni nd process multiple unauthoriz he permissible wallet balance w count linked with the petitioner a is at nascent stage. It is befitting ea for grant of anticipatory bail,

The not in on ure ing self do ing this ely tant and ive ital ner, ical zed ere and

Court ha protecting and nature and free i iniquities that prima which ha establishe to grant a impedime SCC 187 (SCC p. 1

¶9offence a thorough as to equilibrate between saf g societal interests. The Court ou e of the offence; the role attribut investigation as also the deeper on the society. At this stage, the a facie case is not made out ag as come on record and prelim ed a reasonable basis for the accu anticipatory bail to the petition ent in effective investigation. In : 1997 SCC (Cri) 1039, the Hon 189, para 6) "6. We find force in the submissi qualitatively more elicitation-orie well-ensconced with a favourable a case like this, effective inter tremendous advantage in disinter materials which would have interrogation would elude if the protected and insulated by a pre interrogated. Very often interroga a mere ritual. The argument tha with the danger of the person b need not be countenanced, for, su accused in all criminal cases. Th police officers would conduct th would not conduct themselves as o In view of the gravity of t and the requirement of the cust investigation, this Court is of

feguarding individual rights a ught to reckon with the magnitu ted to the accused; the need for f r and wide impact of such alleg ere is no material on record to ho gainst the petitioner. The mater minary investigation, appear to usations. Thus, it is not appropri ner, as it would necessarily cau n State v. Anil Sharma, (1997) n'ble Supreme Court held as unde ion of CBI that custodial interrogation ented than questioning a suspect who e order under Section 438 of the Code rrogation of a suspected person is rring many useful informations and a been concealed. Success in s suspected person knows that he is w e-arrest bail order during the time he ation in such a condition would reduce at the custodial interrogation is frau being subjected to third-degree meth uch an argument can be advanced by he Court has to presume that responsi hemselves in task of disintering offen offenders." the allegations, the nature of todial interrogation for a fair a f the considered opinion that

and ude fair ged old rial be iate use 7) 7 er : n is o is e. In s of also uch well e is e to ught ods y all ible nces

milieu of

10.

(i)

(ii) of opinion

(iii)

April 20, Ajay

r does not deserve the concession the case in hand. In view of the prevenient rati The instant petition is devoid Nothing said hereinabove sh n upon merits of the case/investig Pending application(s), if any

2026

n of anticipatory bail in the fact iocination, it is ordained thus: d of merits and is hereby dismiss hall be deemed to be an expressi gation. y, shall also stand disposed off. (SUMEET GOEL)

JUDGE

ual