SC quashes Anil Ambani’s plea challenging Bombay HC order:Proceedings to classify his bank accounts as fraud to continue

The Supreme Court on Thursday, 16 April, 2026, dismissed the pleas of industrialist Anil Ambani challenging the Bombay High Court order that allowed the proceedings initiated by banks against him and Reliance Communications Ltd to classify their bank accounts as fraud to continue, according to news agency, PTI. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi permitted Ambani to pursue his plea before the high court’s single judge bench against the banks’ show cause notices to declare the accounts as fraud. The Supreme Court bench requested the single-judge bench to expeditiously decide Ambani’s plea against the show-cause notices issued by three banks. Banks can declare Anil Ambani a fraud: Bombay High Court order Bombay High Court order had earlier stated that banks could proceed to declare Anil Ambani as a fraud. There is an alleged ₹40,000-crore fraud case going on involving the Reliance Group chairman. State Bank of India (SBI) classified accounts linked to Anil Ambani as fraud based on a forensic audit report. Other lenders involved in proceedings against Anil Ambani are Bank of Baroda, Indian Overseas Bank, and IDBI Bank. Additionally, the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation are also involved in the proceedings against Anil Ambani. What fraud means in banking laws? If banks declare an account as ‘fraudulent,’ it has serious consequences. According to RBI (Reserve Bank of India) rules, after being declared a fraud, the concerned individual or company faces significant difficulty in obtaining any kind of loan from the banking system in the future. Additionally, central investigative agencies like the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) can also initiate their investigation into the matter. Background In the past few years, several of Anil Ambani’s companies have gone through bankruptcy proceedings. Companies like Reliance Communications (RCom), Reliance Naval, and Reliance Capital have had significant debt. Recently, Reliance Power and Reliance Infra have tried to become debt-free by repaying some of their debts, but old bank loan classification cases still pose legal challenges for them.