Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 applies when a cheque is drawn:

Section 138 applies where a cheque is "drawn by a person on an account maintained by him with a banker" for payment to another person. A cheque is by definition drawn on a specified banker under section 6, so an instrument drawn on a money lender, a non-banking finance company or a court's deposit falls outside the section.