The Supreme Court has issued notices to key authorities—including the finance ministry, corporate affairs ministry, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)—regarding a plea filed by Sucheta Dalal, Managing Editor of Moneylife and a trustee of the Moneylife Foundation.
Represented by senior counsel Prashant Bhushan, the plea calls for unclaimed financial assets lying in dormant or inoperative accounts to be made publicly visible through a centralized, online platform.
A bench comprising Justices S. Abdul Nazeer and J.K. Maheshwari emphasized the importance of the issue and directed that replies be filed within eight weeks.
The petition highlights that when funds are unclaimed—typically because heirs or nominees cannot be located—they are transferred into government-managed repositories like the Depositor’s Education and Awareness Fund (DEAF), Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF), and Senior Citizens’ Welfare Fund (SCWF). Given that these balances remain effectively inaccessible to rightful claimants, the petition urges issuance of appropriate orders for the creation of a centralized database to provide overdue transparency.
As specified in the petition, DEAF held approximately ₹39,264 crore by March 2021—an increase from ₹33,114 crore in March 2020 and ₹18,381 crore in March 2019. Meanwhile, IEPF’s holdings rose from ₹400 crore in 1999 to ₹4,100 crore by March 2020.
The plea also recommends that banks be required to regularly (every nine to twelve months) report dormant or inoperative accounts to the RBI. This reporting should include relevant details such as the deceased account-holder’s name, address, and the date of the last transaction—information that can significantly aid in locating heirs.
Summing up the petition’s core argument, it emphasizes that the current process for claimants—often involving lengthy legal procedures—is unnecessarily burdensome. A centralized system would simplify the path for legal heirs to identify and reclaim their entitlements.
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