India’s Central Bank Responds to Petitions Filed at Supreme Court Seeking the Overturn of its Crypto Banking Ban
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has just filed a written legal declaration with the country’s Supreme Court in response to petitions against the crypto banking ban it imposed in the country few months ago. Reportedly, the central bank argues that it acted within its powers when t imposed the blanket ban on banking in cryptos and that none of the petitioners have shown reasonable grounds for the Supreme Court to overturn the ban.
Just last week, the Supreme Court was due to hear all the petitions against the crypto banking ban imposed by the central bank. However, the case had to be postponed for the second week in a row from the original hearing date of September 11th. According to industry participants, the court is now scheduled to hear the case on September 25th.
The central bank filed an affidavit in response to a petition filed by the Internet and Mobile Association (IAMAI), as reported by Inc42 this past Friday. Inc42 said it has a copy of the petition filed by IAMAI as well as the response filed by RBI on September 8, 2018.
In its affidavit, the central bank argues that the IAMAI petition, along with other petitions challenging its ban, “is not maintainable either in law or on facts and, hence, liable to be dismissed as such.”
The petitioners claim that the central bank’s action “violates Articles 19 (1) (g) and 14 of the Indian Constitution,” which “will lead to the closure” of affected companies, the publication reported. Nonetheless, the RBI explained in its affidavit that “The impugned circular and the impugned statement neither violate the right to equality guaranteed under Article 14 or the right to trade and business guaranteed under Article 19 of the Constitution.
The bank further argues that petitioners cannot seek to exercise the extraordinary jurisdiction of the court to avail a right which they do not have. The RBI’s response went on to state that :“There is no statutory right, much less an infringed one available to the petitioner to open and maintain bank accounts to trade, invest or deal in virtual currencies.” In addition to that, the central bank claims that IAMAI and others “haven’t got any reasonable or tenable ground for interference by this court.”
We will follow developments on this story and update you accordingly.
