Dear all,
I am a foreigner living and working in Tamil Nadu.
A few days ago my Indian bank account (Axis) was frozen, I've been informed of that yesterday by my company, which wasn't able to transfer my salary on it last Friday (they finally had to pay me cash).
I'm trying to figure out with my bank what the problem is but all we know is that the decision came from a higher authority ("Royal Bank of India" or something like that, whatever that is, has been evoked) and my bank is "looking into the matter", which mean they may find out an explaination tomorrow as well as next year as far as I'm concerned (they went as far today as to tell me that they had "lost" my bank account's files and were looking for them in their computers, so that says it all about how efficient they are!).
My company's accountant claims that this may be happening for 4 possible reasons:
1/ I am the subject of an international banking "freeze" due to debts or other issues in my home country. This is not the case and my home country's bank has confirmed it to me today.
2/ I have unpaid debts in India. My bills are paid and I have no debt whatsoever in India or anywhere else for that matter.
3/ I am not properly registered at the FRRO and considered an illegal immigrant, which seems dubious because I have the proper visa and resident permit and my situation as an immigrant is absolutely legal and by the book. + I've been here for 8 months now and no problem so far.
4/ Here's the scary one: I am the subject of criminal charges or a criminal investigation in India. I know for a fact that I haven't commited any crime or done anything illegal in India (or anywhere else), save maybe downloading some music and movies, none of them Indian (I've checked online and there are like THREE cases EVER in which India went after people for that, all of them being about the latest Bollywood movie, so it just can't be that). I'm as clean as a newborn baby: I can't think of a single thing that I may have done or that may have happened that may put me in an illegal situation of any kind in this country! Nonetheless, my company's accountant seems very much worried about that, going as far as to suggest that for him it's likely to be the correct explaination and that, when I try to solve the problem with that "Royal Bank of India" or whatever institution it is, I should make sure that "they can't track me down". Huh? Whaaaaaaaaaat? Even if I was facing false accusations of God knows what crime or fraud I haven't commited, if they know my bank account they know where I live and where I work so what the hell, I'd already be in jail wouldn't I?
I had another theory: due to that whole mess, I've just realized that I've never received my PAN card (which I applied for 8 months ago) so my guess was that maybe that was the reason, that I was registered as a foreigner working in India without a PAN card (it would then make it all easier since I have proof that I have applied for it) but my accountant told me that no, it can't be that, that this mysterious Indian administration that has closed my bank account isn't worried about taxes and PAN cards. Huh? How can he be so sure? I don't know and he wouldn't explain.
So I'm very much worried about that whole situation and sometimes when you're a foreigner in India it's EXTREMELY difficult to get clear answer from locals (don't get me wrong, I love this country and I chose to come here because I'd travelled here a lot earlier and knew I loved it, but it's a fact that getting clear information is hell, I've experienced it numerous times all over India). I mean it's probably nothing, a mistake from the administration or maybe finally just that PAN card thing, but the mere idea that I may be wanted by the Indian police for any reason is... terrifying to say the least. And the fact that I have NO IDEA whether I will finally be informed of the reasons why this is all happening tomorrow or in weeks is quite upsetting as well.
So here I am, desperately seeking advice and opinions regarding what could be the cause of this bank account freezing. Does the "wanted by the police" theory of my accountant make any sense? Could it finally just be the PAN card despite what he says? Any other possible explaination or theory?
Many, many thanks for your help. One can feel VERY lonely facing legal/administration problems in a foreign country, so your help may really be precious.
Kind regards.
