New MHA SOP

[SUNAINA]

Hi everyone,
My HDFC Bank account frozen on 10 November 2025 due to two Cyber Complaints of Rs 467 and 1135 . Recently MHA has come with new SOP in which it's mentioned that only disputed amount should be kept on hold and in 90 Days the disputed amount should be claimed if not Bank has to unfreeze the amount, So my question is my account will be unfreeze automatically now. Anyone here from Bank official or Cybercrime official or who has exact information about New SOP please reply.

 

[bekifaayatifan]

Stupid bekifaayati mods won't let me post reddit links.

www reddit com/r/LegalAdviceIndia/comments/1jgljwj/how_i_got_my_frozen_bank_account_unfreezed/
www reddit com/r/LegalAdviceIndia/comments/1jh918t/more_answers_on_bank_freezes_and_how_to_handle/

" Below is copied from the Reddit post."

Step 1: Checking Why My Account Was Frozen I asked the bank:
Did the police send the notice under Section 91 CrPC or Section 102 CrPC?
Here’s why this matters:
Section 91 CrPC: Police can’t freeze your account, they can only ask for details.
Section 102 CrPC: Police can order freeze, but they must inform a magistrate within 2 months.
In my case, the police never informed the magistrate, making the freeze illegal.

I told the bank:
This freeze doesn’t comply with the law. As per the High Court ruling, they can only freeze the disputed amount, not my entire account.
They never informed me or provided a copy of the freeze notice.
The bank still refused to unfreeze it.
I made it clear:
I would file a High Court case against them.
They were violating High Court guidelines.
If I took them to consumer court, it would get ugly.

Suddenly, the bank manager changed his tone and asked for proof that I wasn’t involved in any fraud.
I instantly filed an RTI (costs 10 rupees) asking:
Is there any case registered against me in this district or state?
The response came back NO, my name wasn’t even in any complaint.
After showing the RTI response and threatening legal action, the bank finally unfreezed my account. They asked for an application, requesting to unfreeze with the RTI reply attached.

In similar situation, you can try these:
Ask the bank if the freeze is under:
Section 91 CrPC or 102 CrPC, did they inform a magistrate within 2 months. If they didn't, the freeze is illegal.
Demand Proof from the Bank. Ask for a copy of the email or letter from cyber crime, ask for a confirmation letter about the freeze and ask why they froze the entire account instead of just the disputed amount.

File a RTI asking is there any case against you in this district or state related to that freeze. If the answer is NO, use this as proof to unfreeze your account.
You have to put some pressure on the bank. Tell them the freeze is illegal if they didn’t follow CrPC rules. Bank's have to follow up the too in a debit freeze by police. Mention the Madras High Court judgement (W.P. No. 25631 of 2024). Warn them about filing a case in High Court and Consumer Court.
If the police or bank ignores, post on X. This will force them to act fast. If nothing is working file a Writ Petition in High Court. Courts have already ruled that banks can’t freeze entire accounts illegally.

Edit: Currently CrPC is replaced by BNSS. So you have to look for section 94 and 106 of BNSS instead of 91 and 102 CrPC.

Now, what if the bank isn’t giving you a copy of the police letter or the freeze notice? First, write an application to the Branch Manager requesting it. Mention the Madras High Court judgment (W.P. No. 25631 of 2024). If the bank ignores your request, follow up by sending the same request via email to higher officials like the CEO, nodal officer, zonal head, and regional head. You can also use X (Twitter) to call them out by tagging their official handles, along with RBI. In most cases, this will work. But if it doesn’t, you can file a complaint with the RBI Ombudsman as it’s the bank violating court guidelines or consumer court for deficiency in service.

If nothing works, the only option left is to go to the High Court with a Writ Petition. For this, you will need an advocate who practices in the High Court and has experience handling these cases. The cost varies based on location, case complexity, and the advocate’s experience, but generally, Rs. 10,000–Rs. 25,000 should be enough. When filing the petition, you will need to make at least three parties (respondents): the authority that issued the freeze order (police), the bank, and RBI. You can file it in the High Court of the state where the bank is located or in the High Court of the state where the original complaint was filed.