The Madras High Court has expressed its appreciation for the State Bank of India (SBI) for developing a new system called the Court Deposit Accounts Management System-Tamil Nadu (CDAMS-TN). This system was created to manage the large amounts of money deposited by motor vehicle insurance companies and others into bank accounts maintained by various trial courts across Tamil Nadu. The goal of the system is to track the inflow and outflow of funds and prevent misuse. Click here to read more news related to SBI.
The Need for CDAMS-TN
The need for such a system arose after a staff member of a district court in Pattukottai was found to have misappropriated ₹1.5 crore. The High Court discovered that many court accounts across the State were not being properly managed, leading to significant amounts of unclaimed money being left in these accounts. In response, the court initiated a suo motu writ petition to improve the management of court-related bank accounts and prevent further irregularities. Click here to read more news related to SBI.
SBI’s Role and Court’s Appreciation
The special Division Bench, comprising Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and Krishnan Ramasamy, commended SBI’s efforts in devising CDAMS-TN. The court specifically appreciated the work of SBI counsel Chevanan Mohan, Deputy General Manager Virender Kumar Verma, and Assistant General Manager V. Prabhakar for playing a key role in creating this system.
RBI’s Involvement and Further Suggestions
During a hearing on July 25, senior counsel Vijay Narayan, representing the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), suggested that all scheduled commercial banks should explore the idea of setting up centralized units to monitor transactions made in district court bank accounts. Accepting this suggestion, the High Court asked SBI to lead the way by exploring the feasibility of establishing such a unit. The Bench also indicated that if SBI’s model proved successful, other banks could adopt similar systems.
Progress and Next Steps
Mr. Chevanan Mohan from SBI returned to the court and presented a PowerPoint demonstration of the CDAMS-TN system, explaining how it works. The judges were impressed by the progress and requested that the presentation be shared with RBI officials for their input. The court also welcomed a suggestion from amicus curiae N. Vijayaraghavan to involve the General Insurance Council before rolling out the system across all commercial banks.
The High Court has appointed the Registrar (Information Technology-cum-Statistics) as the nodal officer to oversee the implementation of the system. The court will review the case again on September 17, at which point further orders will be passed. Click here to read more news related to SBI.
This new system is expected to bring greater transparency and accountability in the management of court-related deposits, preventing the misuse of funds and ensuring better oversight of financial transactions within the judiciary.
