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Legal Challenges to Cryptocurrency and its Guardian-Less Victims in India: A Critical Victimological Analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2022

Debarati Halder*
Affiliation:
Parul Institute of Law, Parul University, Gujarat, India
Akil Ali Saiyed
Affiliation:
Parul Institute of Law, Parul University, Gujarat, India
*
*Corresponding Author: Prof. (Dr) Debarati Halder, Parul Institute of Law, Parul University, Gujarat, India. E-mail: profdebarati@gmail.com

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown pushed several groups of traders to rely on cryptocurrency as one of the chosen tools for commercial transactions. India is no exception. Because of its notorious misuses by criminal gangs, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) declared cryptocurrency as derecognized. Consequently, the Indian parliament also created a draft bill titled Banning of Cryptocurrency & Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2019 (the Bill), which not only derecognizes the currency or the use of it for any commercial purposes, it also makes the investors, exchanges and agencies dealing with cryptocurrency criminally liable. Later, the Supreme Court of India in 2020 set aside the above-mentioned RBI guidelines banning cryptocurrency. But this has not nullified or suggested any amendment for the Bill. This article argues that due to this legal confusion, cryptocurrency investors, traders, exchanges and agencies, etc. have become guardian-less victims who may not be eligible to claim basic rights of victims as has been established by the United Nations Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power. In such a legal tangle, it is necessary to analyse the issues from cyber-victimological perspectives for providing functional suggestions for restitution of justice.

Abstracto

Abstracto

La pandemia y el bloqueo de COVID-19 empujaron a varios grupos de comerciantes a confiar en cryptocurrency como una de las herramientas elegidas para transacciones comerciales. India no es una excepción. Debido a sus notorios usos indebidos por parte de bandas criminales, el Banco de la Reserva de la India (BRI) declaró que las criptomonedas no fueron reconocidas. En consecuencia, el Parlamento indio también creó un proyecto de ley titulado Prohibición de criptomonedas y regulación del proyecto de ley oficial de moneda digital, 2019, que no solo anula el reconocimiento de la moneda o el uso de la misma para fines comerciales, sino que también hace los inversores, los intercambios y las agencias que se ocupan de criptomoneda penalmente responsable. Más tarde, la Corte Suprema de India en 2020 dejó de lado las pautas de BRI mencionadas anteriormente que prohíben la criptomoneda. Pero esto no ha anulado ni sugerido ninguna enmienda para la prohibición de criptomonedas y la regulación del proyecto de ley oficial de moneda digital de 2019. Este artículo argumenta que debido a esta confusión legal, los inversores, comerciantes, bolsas y agencias de criptomonedas, etc., se han convertido en víctimas sin tutor. quienes pueden no ser elegibles para reclamar los derechos básicos de las víctimas como ha sido establecido por la Declaración de la Organización de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Principio Básico de Justicia para las Víctimas de Delitos y Abuso de Poder. En tal enredo jurídico, es necesario analizar las cuestiones desde perspectivas cibervictimológicas para brindar sugerencias funcionales para la restitución de justicia.

Abstrait

Abstrait

La pandémie et le verrouillage de COVID-19 ont poussé plusieurs groupes de commerçants à s’appuyer sur la crypto-monnaie comme l’un des outils choisis pour les transactions commerciales. L’Inde ne fait pas exception. En raison de ses abus notoires par des gangs criminels, la Reserve Bank of India (RBI) a déclaré la crypto-monnaie décomptabilisée. Par conséquent, le Parlement indien a également créé un projet de loi intitulé Banning of Cryptocurrency & Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2019, qui non seulement décomptabilise la monnaie ou son utilisation à des fins commerciales, mais rend également les investisseurs, les bourses et les agences traitant avec crypto-monnaie pénalement responsable. Plus tard, la Cour suprême de l’Inde en 2020 a annulé les directives RBI susmentionnées interdisant la crypto-monnaie. Mais cela n’a annulé ni suggéré aucun amendement au projet de loi sur l’interdiction de la crypto-monnaie et la réglementation de la monnaie numérique officielle, 2019. Cet article soutient qu’en raison de cette confusion juridique, les investisseurs, les commerçants, les bourses et les agences de crypto-monnaie, etc. sont devenus sans tuteur. les victimes qui peuvent ne pas être éligibles pour revendiquer les droits fondamentaux des victimes, comme cela a été établi par la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les principes fondamentaux de justice pour les victimes de crimes et d’abus de pouvoir. Dans un tel enchevêtrement juridique, il est nécessaire d’analyser les enjeux dans une perspective cyber-victimologique pour fournir des suggestions fonctionnelles de restitution de justice.

抽象的

抽象的

COVID-19 大流行和封锁促使几组交易者依赖加密货币作为商业交易的首选工具之一。印度也不例外。由于犯罪团伙滥用其臭名昭著,印度储备银行(RBI)宣布加密货币被取消承认。因此,印度议会还制定了一项名为“2019 年禁止加密货币和监管官方数字货币法案”的法案草案,该法案不仅取消了对该货币的认可或将其用于任何商业目的,还使投资者、交易所和机构与加密货币承担刑事责任。后来,印度最高法院在 2020 年搁置了上述印度储备银行禁止加密货币的指导方针。但这并未取消或建议对 2019 年⟪禁止加密货币和官方数字货币条例⟫法案进行任何修订。本文认为,由于这种法律混乱,加密货币投资者、交易者、交易所和代理机构等已成为无监护人可能没有资格要求受害者基本权利的受害者,正如⟪联合国关于为犯罪和滥用职权受害者伸张正义的基本原则宣言⟫所确立的。在这样的法律纠结中,有必要从网络受害者的角度分析问题,为恢复正义提供功能性建议。

الملخص

الملخص

دفع جائحة Covid 19 وإغلاقه العديد من مجموعات المتداولين إلى الاعتماد على العملة المشفرة كأحد الأدوات المختارة للمعاملات التجارية. الهند ليست استثناء. نظرًا لإساءة استخدام العصابات الإجرامية سيئة السمعة ، أعلن بنك الاحتياطي الهندي (RBI) أنه تم إلغاء الاعتراف بالعملة المشفرة. وبناءً على ذلك ، أنشأ البرلمان الهندي أيضًا مشروع قانون بعنوان حظر العملة المشفرة وتنظيم قانون العملة الرقمية الرسمية لعام 2019 ، والذي لا يلغي الاعتراف بالعملة أو استخدامها لأي أغراض تجارية فحسب ، بل يجعل المستثمرين والبورصات والوكالات تتعامل معها العملة المشفرة مسؤولة جنائياً. في وقت لاحق ، وضعت المحكمة العليا في الهند جانباً في عام 2020 إرشادات RBI المذكورة أعلاه والتي تحظر العملة المشفرة. لكن هذا لم يبطل أو يقترح أي تعديل على قانون حظر العملة المشفرة وتنظيم قانون العملة الرقمية الرسمي لعام 2019. تجادل هذه المقالة أنه بسبب هذا الارتباك القانوني ، أصبح مستثمرو العملات المشفرة والتجار والبورصات والوكالات وما إلى ذلك ولي الأمر. الضحايا الذين قد لا يكونون مؤهلين للمطالبة بالحقوق الأساسية للضحايا على النحو المنصوص عليه في إعلان الأمم المتحدة لمبدأ العدالة الأساسي لضحايا الجرائم وإساءة استخدام السلطة. في مثل هذا التشابك القانوني ، من الضروري تحليل القضايا من منظور الضحية السيبراني لتقديم اقتراحات وظيفية لإعادة العدالة.

Type
Article
Copyright
© International Society of Criminology, 2022

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