Delhi, February 11 (Punjab Khabarnama Bureau): The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that it is not mandatory for banks to place security guards round-the-clock at all ATMs to enforce proper queues and that only one customer enters an ATM at a time.
The decision by a bench of justices Bhushan R Gavai and K Vinod Chandran came as it overturned a directive issued by the Gauhati high court in December 2013 that mandated the deployment of security guards at all ATMs round the clock to prevent fraud and maintain order at ATM facilities.
Setting aside the high court’s directive, the bench accepted the arguments presented by the Union government and various banks, which contended that deploying security guards at every ATM was impractical.
The State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, and Bank of India had challenged the high court’s 2013 ruling, arguing that it was unfeasible to station guards at all ATMs round the clock, particularly given the sheer number of machines in operation. The Supreme Court stayed the directive in December 2016, and on Tuesday, the bench made this stay permanent by quashing the impugned order of the high court.
During the proceedings, solicitor general of India Tushar Mehta, representing the Union government and some of the petitioner banks, stressed that it was neither viable nor necessary to have security guards at every ATM. He pointed out that in Assam alone, banks operate around 4,000 ATMs, making the directive logistically impossible. Instead, he emphasised that the globally accepted approach to ATM security relies on CCTV surveillance rather than physical security personnel.
Mehta further argued that even when the Gauhati high court modified its directive to require security guards only during operational hours, this did not resolve the issue because ATMs remain accessible 24×7.
Summary: The Supreme Court has ruled that ATMs no longer require round-the-clock security guards, easing security requirements for financial institutions.