How to Track SARFAESI and Section 138 Cases
A step by step guide for banks, NBFCs, and their legal and recovery teams to track SARFAESI cases at the DRT and DRAT, and Section 138 cheque bounce cases at magistrate courts, without missing a hearing date.
How To · Litigation Tracking
A bank or NBFC recovering a defaulted loan is often running two different cases on the same account at the same time: a SARFAESI enforcement matter before the Debt Recovery Tribunal, and a Section 138 cheque bounce complaint before a magistrate court. Tracking both, across hundreds or thousands of accounts and dozens of forums, is where recovery teams lose time and, sometimes, lose the case on a missed date. This guide sets out how SARFAESI and Section 138 tracking actually works, and how to do it without gaps.
- SARFAESI cases are tracked through the DRT (and DRAT on appeal), by bench, case number, and order.
- Section 138 cases are tracked through magistrate courts and eCourts, best done by CNR number.
- Both can run on the same loan account at once, so they need to be tracked as linked, not separate, files.
- Past a small volume, manual portal checks stop being reliable and a tracking system that covers both tribunals and magistrate courts becomes worthwhile.
01Why tracking SARFAESI and Section 138 cases is hard
Recovery teams at banks and NBFCs are not tracking one matter per defaulting borrower. They are usually tracking two, in two different forums, on two different timelines, and a missed date in either one can cost the account real value.
Two different legal tracks, one recovery file
A SARFAESI action is a tribunal remedy for secured loans. It moves through notice, possession, and sale steps, and if the borrower challenges it, through a securitisation application at the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) and possibly an appeal at the Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunal (DRAT). A Section 138 case is a criminal complaint over a dishonoured cheque, filed and tried before a magistrate court under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. The two proceedings can run on the same loan account, in parallel, with completely separate case numbers, benches, and hearing calendars.
The volume and spread make manual tracking unreliable
A mid-sized NBFC can have thousands of accounts in some stage of default, spread across many DRT benches and hundreds of magistrate courts across states. Checking each tribunal and court website by hand for cause lists, hearing dates, and orders does not scale past a small handful of accounts. Once volume grows, manual tracking starts to fail quietly, and the first sign is usually a missed hearing.
A missed hearing date on a single loan account can undo months of recovery work, so tracking has to be systematic, not manual.
Screen before you enforce
Before a SARFAESI notice goes out, many banks and NBFCs first check the borrower and guarantors for pending litigation, since existing disputes can affect the recovery strategy. See litigation screening for banks and NBFCs for how that check works.
02What a SARFAESI case and a Section 138 case involve
Before setting up tracking, it helps to be clear on what stage each proceeding is actually at, since the stage decides what you need to watch for.
SARFAESI, briefly
Under the SARFAESI Act, 2002, a bank or NBFC issues a demand notice under Section 13(2) once a loan account becomes a non-performing asset. The borrower gets 60 days to repay. If there is no repayment, the lender can take possession of the secured asset under Section 13(4) and proceed to sell it, without going to a civil court first. A borrower who objects can file a securitisation application under Section 17 before the DRT, and either side can appeal that order to the DRAT under Section 18. From this point, the case is a tribunal matter with its own case number, bench, and hearing schedule.
Section 138, briefly
Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act makes it an offence to issue a cheque that is dishonoured for insufficient funds, if the payee follows the correct notice procedure. The payee has to send a demand notice within 30 days of the dishonour, and the drawer gets 15 days to pay. If payment is not made, a criminal complaint can be filed within 30 days after that, before the magistrate court with jurisdiction. The trial is meant to be summary and fast under Section 143 of the Act, but in practice these matters often run through several short hearings over summons, appearance, evidence, and final arguments before judgment. For a closer look at this specific tracking problem, see what Section 138 case tracking means.
03How to track SARFAESI and DRT/DRAT cases, step by step
Once a securitisation application or appeal is on file, tracking it comes down to five habits.
- Log the bench and case number the moment it is filed. Record the DRT (or DRAT) bench, the case type, the case number, and the year. Without this, you cannot look up the matter later.
- Check case status regularly on the official DRT portal. The DRT case status page lets you search by DRT or DRAT name, case type, case number, and year, or by party name. Build this into a routine check rather than a one-off lookup.
- Track the cause list for your bench before every listed date. Cause lists confirm whether a matter is actually coming up on a given day, which matters because tribunal dates can shift.
- Track every order that comes out of a hearing. An interim stay on possession, a direction to deposit funds, or a final order on the securitisation application all change what your recovery team should do next, so someone needs to read the order and act on it, not just note that a hearing happened.
- Track the appeal window separately. If the matter moves to the DRAT under Section 18, that is a fresh case number and a fresh hearing calendar, and it needs its own tracking line rather than being folded into the DRT record.
The official portal is a reliable primary source: drt.gov.in.
04How to track Section 138 cheque bounce cases, step by step
Section 138 complaints sit in the regular criminal court system, so tracking them uses a different set of habits.
- Record the CNR number as soon as the complaint is registered. The Case Number Record (CNR) is the most reliable identifier for looking up a case across the eCourts system, more reliable than the case number alone since numbering can vary by court.
- Check status through the eCourts services portal. Searching by CNR or case number returns the current stage, the next date, and the presiding court.
- Track the stage, not just the date. A Section 138 matter moves through summons, appearance, framing of the notice, evidence, cross-examination, and final arguments before judgment. Knowing the stage tells your team what to prepare for the next hearing.
- Track settlement and compounding opportunities. Section 138 offences are compoundable, and many cases close through a settlement rather than a full trial, so it is worth tracking whether the other side has signalled willingness to settle.
- Track volume per defaulter, not just per cheque. A single defaulting borrower with multiple dishonoured cheques can generate several parallel Section 138 complaints across different courts, and treating them as one file is a common way recovery teams lose track of one or two.
The eCourts services portal is the standard starting point: ecourts.gov.in.
05SARFAESI vs Section 138, at a glance
| Aspect | SARFAESI (DRT / DRAT) | Section 138 (magistrate court) |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of proceeding | Tribunal remedy for secured loan enforcement | Criminal complaint over a dishonoured cheque |
| Forum | Debt Recovery Tribunal, appeal to DRAT | Judicial or Metropolitan Magistrate court |
| Trigger | Section 13(2) notice, then 13(4) possession, then Section 17 challenge | Cheque dishonour, statutory notice, then criminal complaint |
| Key stages to track | Filing, interim orders, possession orders, final order, appeal | Summons, appearance, evidence, arguments, judgment |
| Typical volume issue | Fewer matters, but high value and complex orders | Many parallel complaints per defaulter |
| Primary tracking source | DRT case status portal | eCourts services portal (by CNR) |
06What to look for in a tracking system for these matters
Manual tracking works at small volume. Past that, the choice of system matters. Four things to check.
- Coverage of both tribunals and magistrate courts. A system that only tracks civil district courts misses DRT and DRAT matters, and one built only for research misses live status altogether. You need both covered in one place.
- Automatic status and cause list updates. The system should pull hearing dates and cause list entries on its own, rather than requiring someone to check each portal by hand.
- Alerts your team will actually see. WhatsApp or email alerts on hearing dates and new orders matter more than a dashboard nobody opens.
- Reporting across the portfolio. Recovery heads need an MIS view across hundreds of accounts, not case-by-case lookups, to know which matters need attention this week.
There are also tools built specifically around cheque bounce and recovery tracking workflows worth comparing; see our review of LawSathi alternatives if you are evaluating options in that category.
07Where Claw fits
Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.
For SARFAESI and Section 138 tracking specifically, the relevant part of Claw is its case management and tracking layer, which covers over 8,200 courts across India, including all state courts, tribunals such as the DRT and DRAT, district courts, and magistrate courts, alongside the Supreme Court. That means a SARFAESI matter at a DRT bench and a linked Section 138 complaint at a magistrate court can both be tracked from the same place, with automatic case updates, cause lists, and WhatsApp and email alerts on hearing dates. Claw also reads court orders and schedules reminders automatically, which helps when an interim order or a possession order needs immediate action, and it produces MIS reports so a recovery head can see the whole portfolio, not just one file at a time. This sits alongside Claw’s case search and AI tools in the same subscription, which is relevant for teams that also need to research precedent on SARFAESI or Section 138 questions as matters proceed.
08Sources and further reading
Primary sources for tracking these matters:
- DRT case status (official): drt.gov.in
- eCourts services (official): ecourts.gov.in
- Claw: clawlaw.in
This guide explains the tracking process for SARFAESI and Section 138 matters. It is not legal advice, and specific timelines or procedures should be confirmed against the current text of the SARFAESI Act, 2002 and the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, or with counsel.
09Frequently asked questions
How do I check the status of a SARFAESI case at the DRT?
Use the official DRT case status portal at drt.gov.in, searching by DRT or DRAT bench, case type, case number, and year, or by party name. Keep a record of the bench and case number from the moment the securitisation application or appeal is filed, since that is what you need to look it up later.
How do I track a Section 138 cheque bounce case?
The most reliable way is to note the CNR (Case Number Record) number as soon as the complaint is registered, then check status through the eCourts services portal. Track the stage of the case, such as summons, evidence, or final arguments, not just the next date, since the stage tells you what to prepare.
Can a SARFAESI case and a Section 138 case run at the same time on the same loan?
Yes. A SARFAESI action to enforce security and a Section 138 complaint over a dishonoured cheque are legally separate proceedings and can proceed in parallel on the same defaulting account, in different forums with different timelines.
What happens if a bank or NBFC misses a hearing date in one of these cases?
Missing a hearing can lead to an adjournment against your interest, an unfavourable interim order, or in some cases dismissal for non-prosecution, depending on the forum and the stage. This is why systematic tracking, rather than occasional manual checks, matters once a recovery team is handling more than a handful of accounts.
Do I need different tools to track DRT cases and magistrate court cases?
Not necessarily. Some case tracking systems cover both tribunals like the DRT and DRAT and magistrate or district courts in one place, which avoids checking separate portals for what is often the same underlying loan account.
Is Section 138 a civil or criminal case?
It is a criminal complaint, tried before a magistrate court, even though it arises from a commercial dispute over a dishonoured cheque. The trial is meant to follow a summary procedure under Section 143 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, aimed at faster disposal than a typical criminal trial.