LUCKNOW, Sept. 30 -- More than Rs.1.01 crore has been frozen or put on hold in seven digital-arrest cases registered in Lucknow this year, but only Rs.16.81 lakh has so far been returned to victims, prompting the cyber crime police to launch an awareness drive on the online mechanisms available for recovering frozen fraud money. "Under Operation Digital Kavach, the cyber crime police are informing victims about the Money Restoration Mechanism (MRM) and genuine account holders about the Grievance Redressal Module (GRM), both operated by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), ministry of home affairs, under the NCRP/CFCFRMS system," said ADCP (Crime) Kiran Yadav. The police said the process differs depending on the amount frozen or put on hold. For amounts below Rs.50,000, victims who have reported the fraud through the 1930 helpline or National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal and received a 14-digit acknowledgement number can apply online through the MRM portal, provided the money is still frozen or on hold in the accused's account. The victim has to log in through the MRM portal using the mobile number linked to the cybercrime complaint, select "Raise Refund Request", enter the 14-digit acknowledgement number and verify it through OTP. If eligible funds are displayed, the applicant has to upload their PAN card and provide the bank account number and IFSC code into which the refund is to be credited. The police said the MRM route cannot recover money that fraudsters have already withdrawn from the bank accounts. For amounts above Rs.50,000, the police said a court order is required for release of the frozen/held amount. The victim has to approach the competent court with a release application, following which the investigating officer sends the court's order to the concerned bank. The bank then processes the release and updates the NCRP-CFCFRMS portal. The cyber police have also highlighted a second problem emerging during investigations: innocent people finding their bank accounts frozen because cyber fraud money passed through them. Police said cyber fraudsters often route money through multiple bank accounts, including accounts belonging to people who may have no direct connection with the fraud. Such accounts can subsequently be frozen, placed under lien or have digital banking services suspended during investigation. "In such cases, the genuine account holder can approach their bank branch with an application for removal of the freeze/lien, KYC documents and a passport-size photograph. After verification of KYC and transactions, the bank can register the grievance on the GRM portal. The complaint is then forwarded to the investigating officer, who examines the transaction trail and determines whether the account should be unfrozen or the request rejected," added the ADCP....