Jharkhand High Court Orders Immediate Activation of Cyber Adjudication Office to Combat Fraud
Case No: W.P(PIL) 4900 OF 2024
By Sandhya kaika
In a landmark push for digital accountability, the Jharkhand High Court has ordered the State Government to fully operationalise the Office of the Adjudicating Officer under the Information Technology Act, 2000. Despite rules existing since 2003, the court noted that these provisions remained a “dead letter” in the state, leaving victims of cybercrime and data breaches without a dedicated recovery mechanism.
The Public Interest Litigation (PIL), filed by Manoj Kumar Singh, highlighted that while the Central Government had notified the appointment of State IT Secretaries as Adjudicating Officers decades ago, no functional infrastructure or clear procedures existed in Jharkhand for citizens to file claims for damages.
The court observed that Smt. Pooja Singhal (Secretary, IT & E-Governance) is already designated as the Adjudicating Officer. The bench criticized the “disproportionate time” wasted by the government in redrafting Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) while citizens suffered from cyber fraud. Under Section 46, the Adjudicating Officer has the power of a Civil Court to award compensation for claims up to ₹5 Crore.
The Court issued a Writ of Mandamus with the following time-bound directives:
Complaints must be received and adjudicated starting within one month.
Within 15 days, the state must advertise this facility in local and regional newspapers to ensure victims of cyber fraud know where to seek justice.
The government must facilitate online complaint registration (currently via it-secretary@jharkhandmail.gov.in).
A formal Standard Operating Procedure must be finalized within 6 months.
The Adjudicating Officer is required to file a compliance report by October 30, 2026.
”There is no justification for the adjudicating officer not to start functioning... wide publicity is required so that victims of cyber fraud are aware of this mechanism.” Jharkhand High Court
Petition disposed with directions to operationalise IT Act remedies and spread awareness among students and senior citizens.
