Dirch Benussi

A cheque is a financial document that orders a bank to pay a particular amount of money from a person’s account to another individual’s or company’s account in whose name the cheque has been made or issued. The cheque is utilised to make safe, secure, and convenient payments. It serves as a secure option since hard cash is not involved during the transfer process; hence the fear of loss or theft is minimised.

A cheque may be issued against a current account or a savings account. Every bank cheque has a cheque number, MICR and IFSC code. Under this mode of fund transfer, there are three parties involved in the on-track movement of money through a written paper source.

There are three parties to cheque –

Apart from the above mentioned parties, there are two more parties to a cheque:

Sometimes, the drawer and the payee can be the same person, when the drawer writes a self-cheque.

Read in detail: Types of Cheque

To cancel cheque leaves, you just need to strike two lines across the cheque and write the word “CANCELLED” across it. You don’t need to sign the cancelled cheque. It only works as proof that you have an account in the bank. There is the account holder’s name, branch name and address, account number, and MICR code on the cheque which is enough to submit as proof.

As all the primary details of your bank account are present in a cancelled cheque, it helps a verifier/auditor to confirm these details of yours. Moreover, a Cancelled Cheque doesn’t necessarily require your signature on it, so there aren’t any security issues which you should be concerned about when you submit your bank cheque as proof of your financial identity.

A crossed cheque is any cheque which is crossed with two parallel lines. The lines can be drawn either across the whole cheque or through the top left-hand corner. What does it signify? It simply means that the specific cheque can only be deposited straightway into a bank account and cannot be instantly encashed by a bank or any credit institution. This ensures a level of security to the payer since it requires the funds to be handled through a collecting bank.

Cross cheque focuses on the instruction given by the drawer (maker) of the particular cheque to the drawee bank. This instruction demands to pay the cheque at the counter of the bank, but with a strict direction to pay it to a person who offers it through a banker. What is the purpose of crossing? Crossing makes it possible to trace the person to whom the amount/payment has been made. In India, there are various crossing tools to safeguard cheque payments such as:

General Crossing

This type of cheque crossing requires two parallel transverse lines. There isn’t any restriction on putting these parallel lines on a specific area on the cheque, but they can be drawn anywhere. Usually, it is advisable to put it on the top left corner of the cheque. The usefulness or significance of this crossing is that the cheque should essentially be paid only to the banker.

Special Crossing

Special Crossing cheque does require the name of the banker. The effect of this type of crossing is that the cheque should be funded only to the banker to whom it is crossed. It is a reminder to all the people that a special crossing cannot be changed into a general crossing.

Not Negotiable Crossing

In this type of cheque crossing variety, the paper document needs to contain the words ‘not negotiable’. Moreover, the cheque can be crossed specially or generally.  What is the effect of this crossing?  The cheque remains non-negotiable (transferrable) as well as the title of the transferee will not be better than the title of the transferor.

Uncrossing a Cheque

A cheque leaf, commonly known as a Cheque, is a tool which is used to transfer funds from one bank account to another. A bundle of cheque leaves attached is a cheque book which is provided by the bank to its customers.

There are various ways in which you can apply for a new chequebook using any of the following means given below:

Different banks across India have stated specific guidelines regarding the proper filling of cheques. It is important to go through your bank’s guidelines for acquiring proper awareness. Further, do not miss to check out conditions for cheque bounce; this would make you more alert during the cheque filling process.

A bank can refuse to make the payment mentioned on a cheque due to various reasons. Some of them are mentioned as follows:

MICR or Magnetic Ink Character Recognition is a 9-digit code generally printed at the bottom of the cheque leaf. The first three digits represent the city, the next three the bank and the last three the particular branch code. The MICR code on cheque helps in easier identification of cheques, eliminate payment errors and process cheque payments faster.

Q. What is the punishment and penalty related to a dishonoured cheque? Ans. The court, after receiving the complaint along with relevant documents, will start the case. If the drawer is found guilty, as per Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, he/she can be sent to the jail for up to two years and/or pay the penalty of amount twice the cheque amount. In addition, the banks also have the right to close the guilty person’s account (on repeated bounce cheque offence) or stop their cheque book facility. The bank may also charge a penalty to both the drawer and the payee for the inconvenience, extra paperwork and wasting the bank’s time.

Q. What happens if the payee takes legal action against the drawer? Ans. If the payee decides to proceed legally, a chance is given to the drawer to pay the cheque amount immediately. For this, the payee is supposed to send a notice to the drawer within 30 days from the date the payee receives the “Cheque Return Memo” from the bank. The notice should state that the cheque amount must be paid to the payee within 15 days of receiving the notice.

If the drawer still fails to pay money to the payee within 30 days of receiving the notice, the payee has full right to file a criminal report against the drawer as per Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. But the complaint or report should be registered in a magistrate’s court within a month of the expiry of the notice period.

Q. What happens if a cheque is dishonoured by the bank? Ans. As per the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, if a cheque is dishonoured by the bank due to insufficient money in the bank account of the drawer then it is a criminal offence. In such a case, the drawee bank issues a ‘Cheque Return Memo’ to the payee’s bank mentioning the reason for non-payment. In turn, the payee’s bank handovers the bounced cheque and the memo to the payee.

Now the payee has the choice to either re-present the cheque within three months from the date mentioned on it or legally prosecute the drawer. If the payee proceeds with the former choice and if even the second time, the drawer fails to make the payment then the payee has the right to sue the drawer. However, the payee can sue the drawer only if the amount mentioned on the dishonoured cheque is to pay off a debt or any other liability of the drawer towards the payee. The drawer cannot be sued in such cases in which the cheque was handed out as a gift or to lend a loan to the payee or for unlawful purposes.

Q. What is the difference between depositing and cashing a cheque? Ans.

Q. Is a cheque payable outside of banking hours? Ans. No, a bank is liable to make the payment only during working hours.

Q. Can banks refuse to make a payment? Ans. Yes, the bank can refuse to make a payment in the following circumstances: If the cheque is without a date In case more than 3 months have elapsed since the issue of the cheque In case a post-dated cheque is presented before its date

Q. What is a cheque number? Ans. It is a 6-digit unique number printed on each cheque leaf.

Q. Can a cancelled cheque be used multiple times? Ans.Yes, the same cancelled cheque can be used multiple times.

A judge has ruled that Anna Sorokin, the fake heiress Netflix’s “Inventing Anna” is based on, can be released from jail on bond while she fights deportation – if certain conditions are met.

Juda Engelmayer, a spokesman for Sorokin, confirmed her release in an email to CNN Friday night.

“She will remain under the supervision of ICE, but will be able to fight her deportation free from physical custody,” said John Sandweg, a former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement who’s on Sorokin’s legal team.

According to court records, Immigration Judge Charles Conroy found this week that Sorokin can be released on $10,000 bond from Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. But he also ruled that she must remain confined 24 hours a day at a residential address and refrain from accessing any social media platform either directly or through a surrogate while her case continues.

The judge’s ruling also said ICE may use an ankle monitor to keep tabs on Sorokin.

A spokesman for ICE said Sorokin was being released Friday after the judge’s ruling.

She’d been in ICE detention for 17 months, according to her attorney – mostly at the Orange County Correctional Facility in upstate New York, about 60 miles from New York City.

“This ruling does not mean that Anna will get a free pass. She will continue to face deportation proceedings and her release will be closely monitored by ICE and the State of New York,” attorney John Sandweg, a former acting director of ICE who’s one of Sorokin’s attorneys, said in a statement Thursday. “As the Court found, however, the evidence clearly demonstrated that any risks can be more than adequately mitigated by appropriate supervision.”

Sorokin was found guilty of stealing more than $200,000 from banks and friends while scamming her way into New York society, the Manhattan District Attorney said after her 2019 conviction.

Her case drew widespread attention after a 2018 New York magazine article.

That article became the basis of Shonda Rhimes’ “Inventing Anna,” a dramatization that released on Netflix in February and quickly became one of the streamer’s most popular shows. Actress Julia Garner, best known for her Emmy-winning role as Ruth on “Ozark,” played Sorokin.

The show ends with Sorokin’s conviction. But in real life, the drama has continued.

Sorokin was released from jail in February 2021 after serving nearly four years on theft and larceny charges. But it wasn’t long before she ended up back behind bars.

ICE took custody of Sorokin on March 25, 2021. In November, the Board of Immigration Appeals granted an emergency stay in her case, according to ICE. She’s been fighting her deportation – and also joined a group of plaintiffs suing the agency earlier this year, alleging they’d requested and been denied Covid booster shots while in custody. They dropped their lawsuit in March after receiving the shots, according to court records.

While she’s been detained, frequent posts have been made on Sorokin’s social media accounts. Recently they’ve featured Sorokin’s artwork, which was featured in a New York show in May.

Earlier this year an attorney representing Sorokin told NBC News that he feared her deportation when he couldn’t reach her, but word later emerged that she was still in ICE custody.

Soon afterward, Sorokin spoke out from behind bars, telling the “Call Her Daddy” podcast that she never claimed to be a German heiress.

“I was from Germany, which was true, but nobody ever asked me about my job,” Sorokin said. “Nobody asks who are your parents and how much money do they make. It’s just outrageous.”

She told host Alex Cooper that she never “told any senseless lies.”

But she admitted – sort of – to lying about her status and background.