Loanees do not surrender constitutional rights to banks: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has held that loan defaulters who are not facing criminal charges do not forfeit their constitutional rights when they borrow from banks. Justice V. Lakshminarayanan stated that financial institutions cannot restrict the movement or travel of such individuals.

The ruling clarifies that while banks have legitimate remedies to recover dues, they cannot use travel restrictions as a coercive measure against defaulters in the absence of criminal proceedings. The judgment underscores the distinction between civil debt recovery and criminal liability.