The Supreme Court has granted relief to a man whose credit score remained “negative” for several years despite having no outstanding loans or defaulted payments, according to PTI.
A bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan was hearing a petition filed by Uttarakhand resident Rajendra Singh Panwar, who said his CIBIL score has been adversely affected since 2020 even though he has not taken any loan or defaulted on payments.
The CIBIL score is a three-digit numerical summary of an individual’s credit history that reflects their creditworthiness.
In his petition, Panwar said his credit profile reflected a negative score, which hindered his ability to access financial services.
He argued that two other persons with the same name had been issued the same PAN number and their alleged delay in payment was reflected in his CIBIL records.
Despite getting a new PAN, his high risk score continued due to the link between the old and new PANs.
The Supreme Court subsequently sought responses from major banks, including SBI and PNB, and ordered them to clarify whether Panwar had any outstanding loans or defaulted loans.
In an affidavit submitted to the apex court, Punjab National Bank (PNB) said it had not reported any default against Panwar and that its records did not show any adverse credit information.
The State Bank of India (SBI) informed the court that it reports to CIBIL only those credit facilities that have actually been used by the petitioner and are linked to his updated PAN details.
CIBIL subsequently told the court that Panwar’s records have now been corrected following these clarifications.
183 Million Indians Now Track CIBIL Score: Report
Around 183 million Indians now actively monitor their CIBIL scores, reflecting a significant shift towards greater personal credit awareness and ownership. According to TransUnion CIBIL’s latest report, “CIBIL for Every Indian – Revealing How India Owned Its Credit Journey in 2025”, nearly 75 percent of these users are based in non-metro areas.
This segment saw year-on-year growth of 28 percent by December 2025, underscoring a change in financial behavior that is no longer limited to large urban centers.
Additionally, the number of first-time credit monitors grew by 27 percent year-on-year, indicating that credit monitoring is no longer just a one-time, reactive step associated with loan applications, but is increasingly becoming a regular habit and an essential part of maintaining financial health, an ANI report noted.
Bhavesh Jain, MD and CEO, TransUnion CIBIL, said: “In the past, many consumers only interacted with their credit profile when they needed a product such as a personal loan or credit card. Today, monitoring is not just about a single transaction but is seen as ongoing financial hygiene. Consumers’ focus has shifted from a transactional approach to an asset to build a strong and sustainable credit profile.”
He added: “India is actually moving from simply accepting credit to truly taking responsibility. Monitoring is the behavior that anchors this change, turning the CIBIL score from a static number into a living indicator of financial health that consumers actively monitor and improve.”
