SBI seeks Supreme Court clarification on loan fraud classification

The State Bank of India has moved an application before the Supreme Court seeking clarifications on the apex court’s recent directive that banks hear defaulters before they classify a loan account as fraud.

On March 27, the Supreme Court had rejected SBI's appeal, upholding a Telangana HC order and ruled that it is reasonably practicable for banks to provide an opportunity for a hearing to borrowers before classifying their accounts as fraud.

SBI has also sought exemption from sharing complete details of the forensic audit report with borrowers under the ‘personal hearing’.

The top court also ruled that borrowers must also be given an opportunity to understand the findings of forensic audit report of their loan accounts, and a final hearing opportunity before their accounts are classified as fraud under the RBI’s Master Directions on fraud classification.