Qatar reactivates cell to probe bounced cheques

Manama: Qatar's government is reactivating a special police cell that looks into complaints about cheques rejected by banks for insufficient funds.

The decision was made upon a recommendation from the Advisory Council, the country's legislative body, which also urged the government to empower the Capital Police cell to look into cheque-related disputes and resolve some of them, Qatari daily The Peninsula reported on Wednesday.

The Council said assigning more powers to the special cell meant that courts' time could be saved since all cases of bouncing cheques are referred to the court. The Cabinet has recently ordered the setting up of two special courts to look into cases involving cheques that bounced.

Banking industry sources said that cheque-related disputes have increased and even though the Qatari problem of bouncing cheques is not as acute as in some neighbouring countries, it does warrant special attention.