In a landmark ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court of India decided that borrowers do not possess a legal right to a personal hearing before their accounts are classified as 'fraud' by banks, in accordance with the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) 'Master Directions'. Justices J B Pardiwala and K V Viswanathan stated that the existing procedures, which include issuing a show-cause notice and providing evidentiary material, are sufficient to ensure fairness and prevent miscarriages of justice. The court noted that granting personal hearings to every borrower would be impractical due to the high volume of fraud cases, potentially delaying the process and jeopardizing public funds. While the Supreme Court overruled various high court decisions that mandated personal hearings and the provision of entire forensic audit reports, it maintained that banks are still required to supply account holders with these forensic audit reports. This ruling is expected to streamline the process of handling fraudulent accounts while balancing the rights of borrowers.