Kerala High Court
Ali Ibrahim vs The State Of Kerala on 14 October, 2014
Author: Alexander Thomas
Bench: Alexander Thomas
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT:
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ALEXANDER THOMAS
FRIDAY,THE 8TH DAY OF APRIL 2016/19TH CHAITHRA, 1938
WP(C).No. 11125 of 2015 (M)
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PETITIONER(S):
---------------------
ALI IBRAHIM
S/O.LATE IBRAHIM,KUNNAPPILLY HOUSE, KAKKANAD WEST P.O.,
COCHIN-682 030.
BY ADVS.SMT.N.ANJALI
SMT.K.K.JYOTHILAKSHMY
SRI.SANIL JOSE
RESPONDENT(S):
------------------------
1. THE STATE OF KERALA
REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY HOME MINISTRY, GOVERNMENT
SECRETARIAT THIRUVANANTHAPURAM 695001
2. THE CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
PLOT NO. 5, CGO COMPLEX, LODHI ROAD,
NEW DELHI-110003,REPRESENTED BY THE DIRECTOR
3. THE CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION, KOCHU UNIT,
KATHIRKADAVU, ERNAKULAM, COCHIN-682 017 REP. BY THE
SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE
4. THE SERIOUS FRAUD INVESTIGATING OFFICE(SFIO)
2ND FLOOR, PARIYAVBARAM BHAVAN, CGO COMPLEX, LODHI ROAD,
NEW DELHI-110003, REPRESENTED BY ITS DIRECTOR
5. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
O/O. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF POLICE, THRIKKAKARA,
COCHIN 30
6. THE CIRCLE INSPECTOR OF POLICE
S/O. THE CIRCLE INSPECTOR OF POLICE, SOUTH KALAMASSERY,
COCHIN-683 104
7. DEEPA SHARMA
56, ANANTHAPURA CIRCLE, TC PALIYA MAIN ROAD, K.R. PURAM,
BANGALORE 560 036
8. JAYESH KUMAR AGARWAL
504,GANESH NAGAR,HARNATHAPURA,WARD NO.11, JAIPUR 302 012,
RAJASTHAN
9. NILU AGARWAL
W/O. JAYESH KUMAR AGARWAL,504,GENESH NAGAR,
HARNATHAPURA, WARD NO. 11, JAIPUR 302 012, RAJASTHAN
10. VODAFONE INDIA LIMITED,PENINSULA CORPORATE PARK
GANPATRAO KADAM MARGE, LOWER PAREL, MUMBAI 400013
11. BHARATI AIRTEL
BHARATI TOWERSM, SA ROAD, KADAVANTHRA COCHIN-682 020
12. M/S. CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA,
COCHIN REGIONAL OFFICE, GEO TOWERS, IIND FLOOR, SA ROAD,
POALLIMUKKU, KOCHI-682 016
13. M/S. HDFC BNAK LTD, BANERJI ROAD, ERNAKULAM, COCHIN-682016
14. UCO BANK , ZONAL OFFICE
UCO BANK BUILDING, SR COMPLED, RAVIPURAM ROAD,
COCHIN 682 016
15. STANDARD CHARTERED BANK
HDFC HOUSE, M.G. ROAD, RAVIPURAM, ERNAKULAM, OCHIN-682 016
16. THE PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK
CIRCLE OFFICE, PNB HOUSE, 2ND FLOOR, 40/1461,MARKET ROAD,
ERNAKULAM, KOCHI-682 011
17. AXIS BANK , 41/419, GROUND FLOOR
CHICAGO PLAZA, RAJAJI ROAD, ERNAKULAM 682 016
18. STATE BANK OF INDIA
ZONAL OFFICE, SHANMUGHAM ROAD, ERNAKULAM, COCHIN-682031
*19. SYNDICATE BANK, REGIONAL OFFICE
SHANMUGHAM ROAD, COCHIN-682031
20. THE GOVERNOR
RESERVE BANK OF INDIA, NEW DELHI-110001
21. THE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INVESTIGATION AGENCY,
O/O. NIA,NEW DELHI-110000
22. THE SECRETARY,MINISTRY OF FINANCE
NEW DELHI-110001
23. THE SECRETARY,MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
NEW DELHI-110011
(R-19 WAS STRUCK OFF FROM THE RESPONDENT'S ARRAY AS PER ORDER
DTD.3.8.205 IN I.A.NO.8753/2015)
R21-R23 BY ADV. SMT.LAILA I.S. , CGC
R13 BY ADV. SRI.T.RAJESH, SC, HDFC BANK LTD.
R1,R5,R6 BY ADV. STATE ATTORNEY SRI.P.VIJAYARAGHAVAN
R3 BY ADV. SRI.P.CHANDRASEKHARA PILLAI, C.B.I.
R15 BY ADV. SMT.SREEKALA KRISHNADAS
R10 BY ADV. SRI.P.SATHISAN
R11 BY ADV. SRI.SATHISH NINAN
R11 BY ADV. SRI.SANTHOSH MATHEW
R11 BY ADV. SRI.ARUN THOMAS
R11 BY ADV. SRI.JENNIS STEPHEN
R18-R19 BY ADV. SRI.R.S.KALKURA
R19 BY ADV. SRI.R.S. KALKURA, SC, SYNDICATE BANK
R12 BY ADV. SRI.VINOD JABAR
SRI JACOB . P . ALEX, ADV [AMICUS CURIAE] B/o
SMT.S.AMBILY
SRI.N.NAGARESH, ASSISTANT SOLICITOR GENERAL
SRI.DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN
BY SRI.T.RAJESH
SRI.GEORGE KARITHANAM VARGHESE,SC,UCO B
SRI.SANTHEEP ANKARATH, SC, PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 10.8.2015,
THE COURT ON 08-04-2016 DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C).No. 11125 of 2015 (M)
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APPENDIX
PETITIONER(S)' EXHIBITS
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EXHIBIT P1: PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE CONCOCTED HOME PAGE AND WABSITE OF
THE ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND, AS PRESENTED TO THE PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P2: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF COMPLAINT DATED 14.10.2014 SUBMITTED BY
THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE JOINT COMMISSIONER OF POLICE, NEW DELGI RANGE
EXHIBIT P3: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF COMPLAINT DATED 15.10.2014 SUBMITTED BY
THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE COMMISSIONER OF POLICE, NEW DELHI
EXHIBIT P4: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF COMPLAINT DATED 15.10.2014 SUBMITTED BY
THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE 2ND RESPONDENT
EXHIBIT P5: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF COMPLAINT DATED 15.10.2014 SUBMITTED BY
THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE 4TH RESPONDENT
EXHIBIT P6: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF COMPLAINT DATED 15.10.2014 FILED BEFORE
THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIONAGENCY
EXHIBIT P7: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF LETTER DATED 24.10.2014 ISSUED TO THE
PETITIONER BY MR. BASSI, THE COMMISSIONER OF POLICE, NEW DELHI
EXHIBIT P8: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF RECEIPT OF COMPLAINT
DATED 18.10.2014 SUBMITTED BEFORE THE CITY POLICE, KOCHI
EXHIBIT P9: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF RECEIPT OF COMPLAINT
DATED 18.10.2014 SUBMITTED BEFORE THE CITY POLICE, KOCHI
EXHIBIT P10: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF VISITOR GATE PASS DATED 03.11.2014 ISSUED
TO THE PETITIONER FROM THE SECOND RESPONDENT
EXHIBIT P11: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF DETAILED STATEMENT OF PETITIONERS
ACCOUNT WITH ICICI BANK AND SBI SUBMITTED TO THE POLICE
EXHIBIT P12: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF DETAILED STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS INTO
WHICH PAYMENTSWERE MADE BY THE PETITIONER
EXHIBIT P13: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF LETTER DATED 09.3.2015 SUBMITTED BY THE
PETITIONER BEFORE THE 6TH RESPONDENT
EXHIBIT P14: TRUE PHOTOCOPY OF WEBPAGE PUBLISHED BY SCAMWARNERS
REGARDING 070 PERSONAL NUMBERING SERVICES
RESPONDENT(S)' EXHIBITS
-----------------------
NIL.
sdk+
///True copy///
P.A. to Judge
ALEXANDER THOMAS, J.
==================
W.P.(C).No. 11125 of 2015
==================
Dated this the 10th day of April, 2016
O R D E R
Though the prayers in the aforecaptioned Writ Petition (Civil) are couched in very generalised and wide terms, a perusal of the pleadings and the materials on record would indicate that in substance and essence, the main prayer of the Writ Petitioner is to seek a writ of mandamus to direct the State Police authorities concerned to entrust the investigation pertaining to Crime No.1377/ 2014 of Thrikkakara Police Station, with the 2nd respondent Central Bureau of Investigation, so as to ensure the conduct of a comprehensive investigation into the same, etc. It is the case of the petitioner that some unknown persons, who made contact with him through telephone, e-mail, etc., have defrauded him to the tune of about Rs.68 lakhs and that the said money was handed over to them directly and transferred through bank accounts by the petitioner as persuaded by such fraudsters. It is the further case of the petitioner that the investigation on the complaints as per Exts.P-2 to P-6 and W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 2 :-
P-8 submitted by the petitioner were not acted upon properly by the various authorities concerned. It is discernible from Exts.P-8 and P-9 that a complaint was made before the 5th respondent Assistant Commissioner of Police, Thrikkakara, Kochi, pursuant to which, First Information Report (FIR) was registered pertaining to Crime No.1377/2014 of Thrikkakara Police Station. It is also the case of the petitioner that previously he had submitted Exts.P-2 and P-3 complaints before the Delhi Police. The averments in the Writ Petition reveal that the initial contact with the petitioner by the alleged fraudsters was through e-mail and that he was lured to the transaction by promising large profit in a future business and that money was extracted from him on different occasions, citing various reasons and excuses and the petitioner's trust was run over by convincing e-mail and websites on the pretext, on the pretension of involving foreign nationals, calling from and providing local and international telephone numbers and showing the passport and other details of some foreigners, etc. That only two persons had direct contact with the petitioner, viz., one Sri.Gautam Malik, who is an Indian and one Sri.Michael Adam, who is presumably a foreigner. As per the complaint projected by the petitioner, the W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 3 :-
money was directly handed over to a person of Indian origin in New Delhi and the remaining amount was deposited in various accounts of different banks located in various States in India. That through e-mail <customercare @rbs.onlines.com> and <oneil@rbs.
Onlines.com> a link was forwarded and following that link, the petitioner could open an alleged account as seen in Ext.P-1. From the case put up by the petitioner it is projected that the crime scene is not confined to any geographical boundaries and techniques adopted were sophisticated and technology driven and that interstate operators were involved in trapping the victim and extracting his money and that an effective investigation in this crime may require involvement of specialised agency. That the petitioner was asked to go to Delhi to meet the people concerned and he met various persons in New Delhi and cash was handed over to a person in Delhi, that a representative of the company met the petitioner in Delhi, he received phone calls in India from phones/cellular phone connections provided by Indian telecom companies and cash was transferred by the petitioner to different accounts maintained in different banks in India. Thus it can be prima facie inferred from the case so set up by the petitioner that the alleged fraud in this W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 4 :-
case is said to have occurred in India. From the averments and materials on record, it is seen that the petitioner has a case that there was alleged use of UK telephone numbers and contacted persons, whom the petitioner believed to be foreigners and that there was opening of account with an alleged foreign bank, etc. These aspects by itself do not now clearly show any foreign connection in the said crime and matters in this regards require more intense investigation.
2. The 6th respondent Investigating Officer has filed a detailed statement dated 1.8.2015 in this case, through the learned State Attorney. Paras 2 to 5 on pages 2 and 3 thereof, read as follows:
2. It is submitted that Sri.Ali Ibrahim, the petitioner herein had submitted a complaint before the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Thrikkakkara who is the 5th respondent herein on 17.10.2014 alleging that he has been defrauded by one Mr.Goutham Malik by inducing him to part with an amount of Rs.70 lakhs. The said complaint was forwarded to the SHO, Thrikkakara police station and on 27.10.2014 detailed statement of the defacto complainant was recorded and Crime No.1377/2014 was registered u/s. 406, 420 r/w 34IPC at Thrikkakara police station. The brief of the allegation is that 3 accused persons namely Mr.Wilson Engg, Mr.Michale Adam and Mr.Goutham Malik deceitfully received an amount of Rs.68,35,000/-
from the complainant offering profit in business and later cheated him by not giving the assured profit or returning the amount so received by them.
3. It is respectfully submitted that considering the grave nature of the alleged offence committed, in compliance with Circular No.1/13 I took over the investigation of the above crime on 28.10.2014. For conducting the effective investigation into the above W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 5 :-
crime a Special Investigating Team has been constituted headed by the the direct control and supervision Police, Circle Inspector of Kalamassery under of the Asst. Commissioner of Police, Thrikkakara. The preliminary investigation revealed that the mobile phone numbers used by the accused persons were fake and obtained by impersonation. The other phone numbers used by the accused were international numbers and the details of such numbers are not yet available.
4. It is submitted that in connection with the investigation, Investigating Team visited New Delhi and also the banks wherein the accused persons had opened the accounts. After collecting the address from the bank, further investigation has been conducted and it was found that the address given for opening bank account were also fake. The account details of other bank account to which the defacto complainant had remitted amounts were also verified and was revealed that the said bank accounts were from outside Kerala especially from the North Eastern states. The further investigation revealed that some foreigners were involved in the commission of the offence.
5. It is respectfully submitted that considering the nature of offence as well as the place where the offence has been committed and also the involvement of foreign nationals, the above case is to be investigated by some other agency like the CBI. The Kerala police has its own restrictions and limitations to investigate the above crime, considering the complicity of the accused involved in the scam."
3. During the consideration of the matter, this Court had by order dated 22.5.2015 had ordered to appoint Sri.Jacob.P.Alex, learned Advocate of this Court as the Amicus Curiae to assist this Court on the matters raised in this Writ Petition and he was directed to furnish an Amicus Curiae brief in the matter. Pursuant to the said direction, the Amicus Curiae appointed by this Court had submitted an Amicus Curiae brief dated 22.7.2015. It would be profitable to refer to pages 3 to 8 thereof, which read as follows:
"........... .................... ....................
W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 6 :-
It is seen that the general features and modus operandi of the fraudsters involved in the instant case clearly resembles what is popularly known as `Nigerian Fraud' / `419 Scams' / `Advance Fee Fraud'.
III Common features of `Nigerian Fraud' / `419 Scams' / `Advance Fee Fraud':
These are a type of confidence trick. The scam typically involves promising the victim significant share of a large sum of money, for which the fraudster requires a small upfront payment. If the victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim, or simply disappears. See generally <en.wikipedia.org>.
Usually the scam begins with an email wherein the mail sender introduces a business deal or discrete and confidential handling of a deal. The expectation of a huge profit makes the receiver forget or ignore rules of security and professionalism in business deal. During the process of developing contact, there will be an extensive exchange of emails, faxes and telephone calls. In the next stage, the fraudster will convey that some problems have suddenly arisen which can only be solved by the financial assistance of victim. These can include licensing fees, registration fees, taxes, bribe, attorney fees etc. Such demand for additional payments will continue until the victim is no longer willing to invest any money. At last, the fraudster will disappear. See generally <www.interpol.int>.
IV. Investigation of similar crimes in other countries:
Agencies like Federal Bureau of Investigation in USA; Australian Federal Police in Australia; National Fraud Intelligence Bureau in United Kingdom etc. offers help/ guidance/ assistance to the victims of such crimes in their respective jurisdictions. Such details are available in <www.fbi.gov/scams>; <afp.gov.au>, <www.gov.uk> etc. Interpol also provides assistance for investigating such crimes (see generally <www.interpol.int>.
V. presentResources/ Expertise that may be required to investigate the case:
Since the fraud alleged to have been committed involves e-mail communications, telephone call, online bank accounts transactions etc. from various States, a thorough and effective investigation may be required to unravel the modus operandi and identity of the perpetrators and to recover the money. The transactions have taken place through the Indian banking system. Hence it should be possible to thoroughly verify the money trail. Since the banks have to adhere W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 7 :-
to Know Your Customer (KYC) norms, they should be in a position to say to whom, at which address / account the money was finally sent. Investigation on ATM withdrawals is also relevant. The banks should also co-operate with the police investigation in this regard. If the KYC norms have not been followed, the extent of liability of the banks themselves may also have to be probed.
To conduct a thorough and effective investigation of the instant case, the investigating agency should inter alia have:
1. Adequate technological assistance
2. Competence to investigate the money trail
3. Competence to investigate the telephone trail
4. Ability / assistance to carry out investigation in different States VI. About Plea for Investigation by various agencies mentioned by Writ Petitioner:
In the WPC petitioner has sought for investigation by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Exhibit P4 complaint to that effect was also filed. Complaints are also filed before Serious Fraud Investigating Office (SFIO) - Exhibit P5; National Investigating Agency (NIA) - Exhibit P6. At present, Kerala Police has registered a case and is conducting investigation.
1. Investigation by SFIO:
SFIO has been set up by the Government of India in the Ministry of Company Affairs with a view to undertake investigations under the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 as per Gazette of India, No. 38 dated September 17 - 23, 2005. SFIO is a multi-disciplinary organization under Ministry of Corporate Affairs, consisting of experts in the field of accountancy, forensic auditing, law, information technology, investigation, company law, capital market and taxation for detecting and prosecuting or recommending for prosecution of white-collar crimes/frauds. The SFIO will normally take up for investigation only such cases, which are characterized by:
7 complexity and having inter-departmental and multi- disciplinary ramifications ;
7 substantial involvement of public interest to be judged by size, either in terms of monetary misappropriation or in terms of persons affected, and;
7 the possibility of investigation leading to or contributing towards a clear improvement in systems, laws or procedures. The SFIO shall investigate serious cases of fraud received from Department of company Affairs.
W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 8 :-
The present case may not come within the ambit of category of cases justifying SFIO investigation.
2. Investigation by NIA:
The NIA has been constituted under National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 for investigation of offences related to terrorism and certain other acts, which have national ramifications. The present case may not come within the ambit of category of cases justifying investigation by NIA.
3. Investigation by CBI:
CBI has an Economic Offences Division - for investigation of major financial scams and serious economic frauds, including crimes relating to Fake Indian Currency Notes, Bank Frauds, Cyber Crime as well as a Special Crimes Division- for investigation of serious, sensational and organized crime under the Indian Penal Code and other laws on the requests of State Governments or on the orders of the Supreme Court and High Courts.
It seems CBI would be the best choice for a thorough and effective investigation in the present case. CBI being a central agency with pan-India presence and links with the Interpol; has the wherewithal and mandate to investigate the crime in question, if the Court so directs.
However in the instant case the grievance of the complainant / victim appears to be of a private nature and the amount he is said to have lost is about Rs. 68 Lakhs. No public officer is alleged to be involved in the matter and there is no loss of public funds.
xxx xxx xxx
VII. Other Options
In the event of Court being satisfied that the matter requires investigation by a specialized agency, though an investigating by the CBI cannot be ordered at this stage, an investigation by the Kerala Police Crime Branch (CBCID) may be considered. As mentioned in paragraph V above, the investigating agency requires expertise on certain areas. The case also seems to be a complicated one as it apparently involves technological devices / means, occurrence of events in different states, banking transactions etc. In this context it is relevant to note that Kerala Police is having a Hi- Tech Crime Enquiry Cell (HTCEC). This is a formal set up relating to handling of Cyber Crime and other techno based crimes in Kerala Police. HTCEC is located at Kerala Police Headquarters, W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 9 :-
Thiruvananthapuram. According to <http://
www.keralapolice.org/newsite/hitech_cell.html> the HTCEC
comprises of highly trained personnel who have been trained in Cyber Forensics by C-DAC. They are equipped with the state-of- the-art hardware and software to handle any kind of Cyber Crime. Perusal of its website shows that the HTCEC provides technological assistance to investigation agencies and had experience in handling financial Crimes involving cheating, credit card frauds, money laundering, etc. Nigerian Scams / Online cheating etc. are crimes said to have been reported and handled by HTCEC. It is not clear if assistance of HTCEC is already availed by the police.
It is submitted that the CBCID with the assistance of HTCEC should be able to carry out the initial investigation in an effective and thorough manner, with the co-operation of the Delhi Police.
Considering the nature of the case, a senior officer, preferably ADGP Crimes Kerala may be directed to supervise the investigation of the case and the Commissioner of Police, Delhi may be directed to give all assistance to Kerala Crime Branch in this regard. Hon'ble Court may also consider appointing a senior officer of SP rank (preferably an IPS Officer who can speak Hindi) as Investigation Officer of the case.
If evidence regarding foreign connection emerges during the course of investigation and if the assistance of Interpol is found to be necessary, then it would be appropriate for the CBI to take up the investigation."
4. Heard the respective Advocates appearing for the various parties concerned, Sri.P.Vijayaraghavan, the learned State Attorney, Sri.P.Chandrasekharan Pillai, learned Standing Counsel appearing for the CBI and Sri.Jacob.P.Alex, learned Amicus Curiae.
5. On a perusal of the pleadings in the Writ Petition and the materials on record, this Court is inclined to accept the submissions made in the Amicus Curiae brief.
6. Having regard to the fact that the grievance of the W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 10 :-
petitioner appears to be predominantly of a private nature and the alleged amount of loss suffered by him is about Rs.68 lakhs and as no public officer is alleged to be involved in the crime and as there is no loss of public funds, there is no necessity to direct the entrustment of the investigation to the CBI at this stage of the matter. A Constitution Bench of five Judges of the Apex Court in the celebrated case State of West Bengal & Ors. v. Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights, West Bengal & ors. reported in (2010) 3 SCC 571, para 70, has held as follows:
"...In so far as the question of issuing a direction to the CBI to conduct investigation in a case is concerned, although no inflexible guidelines can be laid down to decide whether or not such power should be exercised but time and again it has been reiterated that such an order is not to be passed as a matter of routine or merely because a party has leveled some allegations against the local police. This extraordinary power must be exercised sparingly, cautiously and in exceptional situations where it becomes necessary to provide credibility and instill confidence in investigations or where the incident may have national and international ramifications or where such an order may be necessary for doing complete justice and enforcing the fundamental rights. Otherwise the CBI would be flooded with a large number of cases and with limited resources, may find it difficult to properly investigate even serious cases and in the process lose its credibility and purpose with unsatisfactory investigations..."
7. The Constitution Bench of the Apex Court in the aforestated ruling has concurred with the observation of the Apex Court in the case Secretary, Minor Irrigation & Rural Engineering Services, U.P. & Ors. v. Sahngoo Ram Arya & Anr. reported in (2002) W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 11 :-
5 SCC 521, wherein it was held that "......an order directing an enquiry by the CBI should be passed only when the High Court, after considering the material on record, comes to a conclusion that such material does disclose a prima facie case calling for an investigation by the CBI or any other similar agency."
8. Accordingly, as submitted by the learned Amicus Curiae, this Court is inclined to consider the entrustment of the investigation of the crime with the State Police, Crime Branch, Crime Investigation Department (CBCID). It is also brought to notice that the State Police authorities is having a Hi-Tech Crime Enquiry Cell (HTCEC), which is a formal set up relating to handling of Cyber Crime and other techno based crimes, in Kerala Police and it is said to comprise of highly trained personnel, who have been trained in Cyber Forensics by the C-DAC (Centre for the Development of Advanced Computing) and they are equipped with the state-of-the- art hardware and software to handle any kind of Cyber Crime. It is also pointed out in the Amicus Curiae Brief that perusal of the website of HTCEC shows that it provides technological assistance to investigation agencies and had experience in handling financial crimes involving cheating, credit card frauds, money laundering, etc. Nigerian Scams/Online cheating etc. are crimes said to have been W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 12 :-
reported and handled by HTCEC.
9. In view of these aspects, the following directions are issued:
(i) The State Police authorities concerned including the State Police Chief will take necessary steps to ensure that the further investigation pertaining to Crime No.1377/2014 of Thrikkakara Police Station is entrusted to the CBCID of the State Police, who shall be actively assisted by the HTCEC (Hi-Tech Crime Enquiry Cell) of the Kerala Police.
(ii) The said further investigation as directed above, shall be supervised by a senior officer preferably of the rank of Inspector General of Police or Deputy Inspector General of Police, as may be nominated by the Addl.
Director General of Police (Crimes) and the said officer shall closely and intensely monitor and supervise the said further investigation. The Addl. D.G. of Police (Crimes) will also ensure that a senior Police officer is made available to be part of the investigation team, who is well-versed in Hindi language, preferably an IPS officer, who is well conversant with Hindi language, as a member of the investigation team so that there could be close co-ordination and liaison with the Police personnel of outside States, especially in Delhi, etc.
(iii) Addl. D.G. of Police (Crimes) should also have overall control and supervision of the further investigation as directed above. The investigation team will submit monthly reports before the supervisory officer concerned with copy to the Addl. D.G. of Police (Crimes) so as to facilitate effective and close monitoring and supervision of the investigation. Necessary discussion and review of the investigation process may be effected by such superior officers on a monthly basis so that fruitful and effective results are borne out by the investigation.
(iv) The investigation team will ensure that the further investigation as directed above is completed without any further delay, preferably within a period of ten months from the date of production of a certified copy of this judgment.
10. It is made clear that if the Writ Petitioner has any grievances in the matter, he will be at liberty to raise such grievances before the Addl. Director General of Police (Crimes), who will examine such petition/representation that may be submitted by W.P.(C).11125/15 - : 13 :-
the petitioner so as to facilitate appropriate follow up action thereon. It is also made clear that this Court has not made any final pronouncement on the necessity of entrustment of investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation and depending on the outcome of the investigation now ordered, the said issue could be considered at the appropriate stage, if it is so warranted, in future.
This Court is inclined to place on record, its deep sense of appreciation in the able assistance rendered to this Court in the resolution of this case, by Sri.Jacob.P. Alex, learned Amicus Curiae.
With these observations and directions, the Writ Petition (Civil) stands finally disposed of.
Sd/-
sdk+ ALEXANDER THOMAS, JUDGE
///True copy///
P.S. To Judge.