The Supreme Court of India has sent a notice to India’s central bank, market regulator, tax department and other responsible agencies, calling on the government to answer the petition calling for the regulation of the use of Bitcoin (Bitcoin) in the country, CoinTelegraph reported.
Part of the petition reads: "The lack of any concrete [control] mechanism pending the regulatory framework in said regard has left a lot of vacuum and which has resulted in total unaccountability and unregulated Bitcoin (crypto money) trading and transactions." The petition claims that Bitcoin exchanges in the country add 2,500 users per day and roughly 500,000 Indian citizens already have Bitcoin holdings.
“These developments could adversely affect the market value of other commodities in the country,” it states.
The petition also cites some of the actions taken by other countries regarding Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Among these are the campaign against cryptocurrency exchanges in China and the move by the Russian government to block Bitcoin websites.
The petition claims that the digital currency can be utilized in executing untraceable transactions across borders, making it an attractive tool for tax evaders and ransomware attackers.
Because of these actions, the petition also urges the Supreme Court to intervene and ask the government to urgently decide how it will approach the issue.