The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has informed the Supreme Court that it has constituted an inter-departmental committee to examine the rising trend of gullible people being subjected to “digital arrest” by gangs operating from both within and outside the country.
The MHA filed the status report in response to two directions issued by a bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi vide orders dated December 1, 2025, and December 16, 2025.
The directions followed a letter petition to the CJI by an elderly couple who were duped of several crores by “digital arrest” scammers, and senior Supreme Court advocate Hemantika Wahi losing his life savings of ₹3 crore.
Wahi’s case was brought to the top court’s notice by Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCORA) president Vipin Nair.
According to the home ministry, the committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of the special secretary (internal security) of the MHA. The members include joint secretary-level officers from the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY), department of telecommunications (DoT), external affairs ministry, department of financial services, ministry of law and justice, ministry of consumer affairs, the RBI, and inspector-general rank officers from the CBI, National Investigation Agency and Delhi police. The CEO of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) will be the member secretary.
According to the MHA, the committee has been mandated “to examine real-time issues faced by enforcement agencies, consider the recommendations of the learned amicus curiae along with the directions issued by the Supreme Court, and to identify relevant legislations, rules, circulars and implementation gaps, suggest corrective measures, and provide inputs for further directions, as may be required by the Hon’ble Court. The committee has, notably, been directed to meet at regular intervals to ensure time-bound and coordinated compliance”.
The MHA said the first meeting of the committee was held on December 29, where it extensively deliberated on the issues and recommendations submitted by the amicus curiae and the directions passed by the top court through its order dated December 1.
During the meeting, representatives of the DoT, MeitY and the RBI submitted that they needed certain clarifications on the recommendations submitted by the amicus curiae.
“Further, in continuation of the above deliberations, the ministry of electronics and information technology convened a meeting with IT intermediaries on January 6,” the MHA said. The amicus curiae and representatives of I4C, the MHA, the DoT, Google, WhatsApp, Telegram and Microsoft took part in the meeting.
“In view of the foregoing facts and circumstances, it is most respectfully prayed that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to grant a period of at least one month to enable the respondents to obtain inputs from the remaining members of the inter-departmental committee and to undertake further deliberations thereon, so as to place a consolidated and considered outcome before this Hon’ble Court,” the MHA pleaded through advocate A.K. Sharma.