ACB arrests four, including two former IDFC First Bank employees, in fraud case

Development and panchayat department officials conducted an in-house inquiry after detecting accounting mismatch.

The Haryana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Tuesday night arrested four individuals, including a woman, for their alleged role in carrying out unauthorised financial transactions and suspected forgery involving Haryana government funds in two private banks – IDFC First and AU Small Finance.

Representational image.

ACB director general Arshinder Singh Chawla said that among the four arrested were two former IDFC First Bank employees – Ribhav Rishi and Abhay. Abhay’s wife, Swati Singla and Swati’s brother Abhishek Singla were also arrested. Chawla said the investigation was being supervised by IPS officer Ganga Ram Punia.

“Swati, along with her brother Abhishek, had set up a company named ‘Swastik Desh Projects’ to divert government funds. We will seek their custody from the court for the purpose of interrogation,’’ ACB officials said.

Development and panchayat department officials conducted an in-house inquiry after detecting accounting mismatch and said that senior IDFC First Bank officials, who attended proceedings of an inquiry committee constituted by the Development and Panchayats department on February 16, 2026, were directed to submit their written statements along with details being presented to the enquiry committee.

“The IDFC First bank officials promised to submit the said statement after due vetting and following standard operating procedure of the bank. But no such statement has been submitted by the said officials till date,’’ officials said.

The records presented to the committee, officials said showed that multiple cheques along with debit notes which were processed by the Bank for payment transfers prima facie bore forged signatures of then director general DK Behera, despite the fact that he had relinquished charge on October 28, 2025.

“The debit notes attached with the cheques do not have any memo number or dispatch number and they also seem to contain forged signatures. One of the cheques processed by the bank mentioned the amount in figures as ₹2,50,00,000 (two crore fifty lakhs), whereas the amount in words is written as ‘Rupees Twenty-Five’, which has been honoured and processed by the bank indicating a serious discrepancy,’’ officials said.

As per the inquiry report, the account statement provided by IDFC First Bank showed that various transfers amounting to ₹46.56 crore were made to AU Small Finance bank account on the basis of these cheques and debit notes. “The inquiry committee sought records of AU Small Finance Bank related to these transactions. But they have not been received till date. Only a statement related to the above said account has been received in the record. The act of the AU Small Finance Bank appears to be non-cooperative as they are not forthcoming with the relevant documents and records with the enquiry committee despite the communication made in this regard vide letter number 6545 dated 16/02/2026 and letter number 6290 dated 18/02/2026,’’ the report said.

The account statement showed that transactions have also been made with Haryana State Pollution Control Board and Municipal Corporation, Panchkula. Such transactions in other departments other than the above two are not ruled out, the report said.

The ACB had on Monday night registered a case against IDFC and AU Small Bank employees alongside unidentified public servants and private persons, primarily in connection with alleged unauthorised financial transactions and suspected forgery involving government accounts maintained by the two banks under the Mukhya Mantri Gramin Awas Yojana 2.0.

The ACBs investigation will, however, widen further and the agency will also scrutinise suspected fraudulent transactions worth ₹590 crore involving certain other government department accounts also.

The first information report registered at Panchkula police station on the basis of a report of an in-house inquiry committee set up by the director, development panchayats department, invoked Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, which provided for punishment in cases of criminal misconduct by a public servant. The ACB has also applied several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 316(5): Criminal breach of trust by a banker or agent; Section 318(4): Cheating; Sections 336(3), 338, and 340(2): Forgery and using forged documents; and Section 61(2): Criminal conspiracy.

The in-house inquiry committee set up by the director of development panchayats department on February 11 had inquired into IDFC First Bank accounts related mismatch. The inquiry revealed a tale of alleged forged signatures, unexplained money transfers and procedural lapses by the two private banks, officials said.

According to the inquiry report, two bank accounts were opened on September 26, 2025, in IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank. An initial sum of ₹50 crore was transferred to IDFC First Bank and ₹25 crore to AU Small Finance Bank in accordance with Finance department instructions of July 12, 2024.

The office record presented before the committee showed that no approvals were ever taken for the utilization of funds in these accounts from the competent authority and the entire amount of ₹50 crores and ₹25 crores remained parked in the accounts for the entire duration.

Office records showed that a request was made to update the signature of the incumbent director for operation of these accounts on December 10, 2025, to the two banks.

“However, when on January 13, 2026, the development and panchayat department directed the two banks to close the accounts and transfer the full amounts along with accrued interest to Axis Bank, discrepancies surfaced. While AU Small Finance Bank transferred ₹25.45 crore and closed the account, IDFC First Bank reportedly transferred only ₹1.27 crore before closing the account, despite instructions to transfer ₹50 crore plus interest. Upon receiving this information, the department registered its disagreement with the status of the account and the statement provided by IDFC First Bank,’’ the FIR registered by the ACB said.