ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has directed banks not to block or freeze citizens’ bank accounts without a verified legal basis.
The court heard a case challenging a bank’s unilateral decision to block a citizen’s account during an inquiry by the NCCIA. Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir issued a six-page written judgment.
According to the judgment, a private bank admitted it had wrongly blocked the account without justification.
The judgment states banks cannot block or freeze citizens’ bank accounts without a verified legal reason. The court also ordered the private bank to pay Rs300,000 to cover legal expenses incurred by the customer in pursuing the case.
The court’s ruling further states the State Bank should take measures in future to prevent citizens from being affected by the blocking of bank accounts without valid reasons. The State Bank should review the present matter and consider issuing guidelines to all banks, the court remarked.
The court ordered precautionary guidelines should clearly state no person may be prevented from using their bank account without lawful justification.
