The Supreme Court of India has directed the Central Government to file a detailed affidavit outlining a comprehensive policy to help legal heirs identify and claim dormant assets belonging to deceased depositors. The directive came during a hearing on Tuesday where the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) highlighted the performance of its centralized search portal, UDGAM.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and Vijay Bishnoi was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by journalist Sucheta Dalal. The petition seeks the creation of a centralized mechanism to inform families about “lost” assets lying in bank accounts, post offices, and insurance policies, which have seen a massive surge in value over recent years.
During the proceedings, counsel for the RBI informed the court that the Unclaimed Deposits – Gateway to Access Information (UDGAM) portal has already facilitated approximately 44 lakh searches. The portal was designed as an interactive gateway to help registered users search for unclaimed deposits across multiple banks in one place.
However, the petitioner’s counsel, Advocate Prashant Bhushan, argued that the current system remains fragmented. While the RBI has directed banks to integrate their data with UDGAM, Bhushan pointed out that significant sums are also tied up in post office savings and insurance schemes.
“Nothing has been done to integrate them,” Bhushan told the bench, emphasizing that a truly effective mechanism should allow a legal heir to find all relevant details across different financial sectors through a single, unified search.
The plea highlights a staggering increase in unclaimed funds held within the Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund, which was established by the RBI in 2014 to hold unclaimed money from commercial and co-operative banks.
According to the petition:
- As of March 2019, the fund held ₹18,381 crore.
- By March 2020, this rose to ₹33,114 crore.
- By the end of March 2021, the amount reached ₹39,264.25 crore.
The petitioner argues there is an “urgent need” for a centralized database under RBI control that lists the names, addresses, and the dates of the last transactions of deceased account holders to prevent these funds from remaining dormant indefinitely.
Representing the Centre, Additional Solicitor General N. Venkataraman previously noted that when genuine heirs come forward, funds are successfully refunded from the DEA Fund. However, the court has maintained that the burden should not rest solely on the heirs, asking why details cannot be proactively disclosed to families to avoid unnecessary litigation.
The Centre informed the court on Tuesday that an updated affidavit is being prepared to address these concerns. The bench has granted the government one week to file this document, providing specific details on the proposed policy.
The matter is scheduled for further hearing on May 19.
