Accepting the argument raised by various banks that it was not practical to deploy security guards at all ATMs round the clock, the Supreme Court has set aside the direction issued by the Gauhati High Court in December 2013 for the security of ATMs. The High Court had directed, inter alia, that security guards should be placed round the clock at all ATMs and that only one customer can enter for one ATM, at a time.
Challenging the High Court’s directions, the State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and the Bank of India approached the Supreme Court. In December 2016, the Supreme Court had stayed the High Court’s direction to deploy security guards at all ATMs.
The Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, representing the appellants, requested the bench comprising Justice BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran to make the interim order passed in December 2016 absolute. He submitted that the direction to deploy security guards in all ATMs was not practical.
“In Assam only we have 4000 ATMs. We can’t have one guard per ATM. The worldwide recognized system is to have CCTV surveillance, which we are doing,” SG said. When the banks filed a review petition, the High Court modified the original order by stating that the security guards need to be deployed only when the ATMs are opening. But the AMTs are open 24×7, the SG said.
The SG submitted that the Reserve Bank of India and the Ministry of Finance have supported the stand of the banks that the directions were not possible to be complied with. He said that the banks have accepted the other directions issued by the High Court.
The High Court passed the direction in a suo motu PIL taken on the basis of a report of the Assam Tribune about a person losing Rs 35,000 from his account few minutes after he withdrew Rs 5000 from the ATM.
Accepting a security protocol suggested by the Assam DGP, the High Court issued the following directions :
(i) Place security guards round the clock at all ATMs so that proper queues are enforced and to ensure that only one customer can enter for one ATM, at a time.
(ii) To ensure CCTVs are functioning round the clock and some alarm systems can be put to indicate if CC Cameras are non functional.
(iii) Entry in ATM chambers with helmets, mufflers, caps etc. with a view to conceal one’s identity should be prohibited by the security guard on duty.
(iv) Check the character & antecedents of temporary workers, canteen employees etc. in the banks.
