Abhishek Banerjee’s Bank Account, Cards Reactivated After KYC Update

The Calcutta High Court on Monday disposed of TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee’s petition over the freezing of his bank account and blocking of his debit and credit cards.
The private bank told the court that the account and cards had been reactivated after Abhishek submitted the required KYC documents.

Abhishek’s lawyer Ayan Bhattacharjee had earlier said that his client’s account was frozen and his cards were blocked on August 10, the same day the Supreme Court allowed him to travel abroad for medical treatment. He also told the court that Abhishek plans to travel abroad this week.

During the hearing, Justice Krishna Rao said that banks should first ask customers to submit the required KYC documents before taking such action. He also observed that cards should not be blocked at the beginning of the process.

The bank said Abhishek’s account was automatically blocked because it was marked as high-risk based on third-party data. The bank’s lawyer also said that an email asking for additional KYC documents had been sent to him.

The bank further said that Abhishek’s name, PAN number and mobile numbers were linked to cases initiated by the Enforcement Directorate.
Abhishek’s lawyer argued that, under RBI rules, an account can be partially frozen only after repeated reminders if the customer fails to provide the required KYC information.
The bank denied violating RBI rules and said it had only asked Abhishek to provide additional KYC documents.