SRINAGAR, Sept 23: Jammu and Kashmir Bank defreezed accounts of Yateen Foundation after a local Court allowed it to operate the bank accounts at different branches of the Bank.
The Chairman of the Foundation Mohammad Rafiq Lone has thanked the officials of the Bank Corporate Headquarters for defreezing their account.
The 4th Additional District Judge Srinagar presided by Gowhar Majid Dalal has allowed the J&K Yateem Foundation, Srinagar to operate the bank accounts opened at different branches of the J&K Bank.
Court further directed that in order to safeguard the interest of the bank, self attested with photograph duly identified and declaration from each signatory of the account holder be obtained by the bank from the Yateem Foundation.
Presiding Officer directed the account holders to submit individual undertaking before the court that they will not violate any rule and regulation of banking and maintain proper account and quarterly submit the statement before the court. “They will also submit another undertaking before this court that if at any point of time there will be any tax related issue, they will resolve the same of their own at their own expenses”, reads the order.
The factual matrix of the case is that the bank has issued a KYC against the NGO on failure of furnishing the renewed registration of the NGO as the earlier registration was valid upto March 2018 as such under the banking norms and as per RBI guidelines the bank had no option but to freeze the accounts.
Aggrieved of the said decision of the bank, challenge was thrown before the court, the email issued for KYC to the extent to declare the same as non-est in the eyes of law and the NGO be allowed to operate the bank accounts without any impediment.
Court said that although there is no specific order for freezing of accounts but the circumstances speaks like that and as per the counsel representing bank, that the bank is not sure as to who will be allowed to operate the accounts as the Society is not registered.
“It is worth to note that the account holder is a registered society, so their registration cannot be ignored, but their registration has expired, cannot be on the same footing without registration. The concerned have not renewed their registration and they are aggrieved by the action of concerned not to renew the same, have filed the writ petition before high court”, Court said.
Court said the Society has prima facie case in their favourt at this stage which appears from face of the record and if relief prayed for is not granted the plaintiff will suffer an irreparable loss which cannot be compensated by any means later.
Court said that during the period of service, Society has created many assets in different shapes and institutions and if the accounts will not be allowed, these institutions will get closed and the functioning of institutions cannot be kept at the mercy of the bank.
“Court is under duty to see the functioning of these should not get affected by the pendency of the litigation. They cannot be put to loss or to be closed for want of money as it is not the amount of individual-plaintiffs but the amount of public in general and due to conflict between the employees of society they cannot take the bank as shield”, Court said.
