A massive ₹590 crore banking fraud linked to IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank has taken a new turn after a special court allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take four accused into custody for three days. Among those arrested are three Haryana government officials and one private individual, all suspected of playing a role in the alleged diversion of public funds.
The accused were presented before the CBI special court on April 27, which approved the agency’s request for custodial interrogation. Investigators believe questioning the suspects directly will help unravel how hundreds of crores meant for government departments were allegedly siphoned off through manipulated bank transactions and shell companies. The accused will be produced again before the court on April 30.
One of the key figures in the investigation is Rajesh Sangwan, who served as Controller (Finance and Accounts) at the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board in Panchkula. According to government officials, approximately ₹10.07 crore belonging to the board is suspected to have been diverted as part of the wider scam.
Another accused, Randhir Singh, previously worked as Controller (Finance and Accounts) at the Haryana School Education Board and is a resident of Ambala. The Haryana government dismissed him from service on April 24 under Article 311(2)(b) of the Constitution, citing serious allegations of corruption. Investigators claim Singh accepted illegal benefits including cash and luxury travel arrangements.
According to the dismissal order, Singh allegedly received flight tickets for a family trip from Chandigarh to Goa in June 2025. The expenses were reportedly covered by the alleged mastermind Ribhav Rishi along with another accused, Abhay Kumar. Authorities believe such benefits were offered in exchange for facilitating financial irregularities.
Ribhav Rishi, who was working as a branch manager at IDFC First Bank, is suspected to be one of the central figures in the case. Investigators say that the Haryana School Shiksha Pariyojana Parishad maintained an account with the bank’s Sector-32 branch in Chandigarh. Randhir Singh was one of the authorised signatories for the account, and his personal mobile number was linked to it.
According to officials, around ₹100 crore was transferred to the IDFC First Bank account on January 8, 2025, from another government account maintained with Kotak Mahindra Bank in Panchkula. Investigators claim that between January 2025 and February 2026, nearly ₹54 crore was fraudulently withdrawn and distributed through various entities.
The CBI suspects that the funds were routed through a network of shell companies before being withdrawn in cash or used for purchasing assets such as gold. Officials told the court that several bank records may have been manipulated and forged documents could have been used to open accounts and transfer funds.
The investigation also led to the arrest of Amit Diwan, Director of Finance at the Haryana Power Generation Corporation Limited. Authorities believe that about ₹54.20 crore linked to HPGCL funds is connected to the fraud. The fourth accused, Ankur Sharma, is a private individual from SAS Nagar in Punjab who is suspected of helping move the funds through private channels.
The case was formally registered by the CBI on April 8 after an earlier complaint by the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau on February 23. The FIR includes charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act along with several offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, including cheating, criminal conspiracy, forgery, fraudulent use of documents and criminal breach of trust.
Investigators say the custodial interrogation of the accused will focus on tracing the money trail, identifying additional beneficiaries and understanding the full scale of the alleged fraud. Officials have indicated that more arrests could follow as the probe progresses and financial records are examined in detail.