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Chandigarh: Jewellers laundered ₹95 cr in IDFC fraud case, says ED
The ED said ₹4 crore cash was seized and bank balances worth ₹22 crore belonging to jewellers and associated entities were freezed during its recent searches at 14 premises across Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula. Incriminating documents and digital evidence were also seized.
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The jewellers raided by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) earlier this week had allegedly laundered ₹95 crore of the proceeds from the alleged ₹645-crore IDFC First Bank fraud by routing the money through shell entities and showing it as gold purchases, the agency said on Friday.
The ED said ₹4 crore cash was seized and bank balances worth ₹22 crore belonging to jewellers and associated entities were freezed during its recent searches at 14 premises across Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula. Incriminating documents and digital evidence were also seized.
According to the agency, the money allegedly embezzled from the accounts of Haryana government, Chandigarh municipal corporation (MC) and Chandigarh Renewal Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) was first routed to shell companies managed by alleged mastermind Ribhav Rishi. From here, the funds were transferred to jewellers, who layered the proceeds by showing it as genuine business transactions – sometimes as gold purchases – and ultimately routed the money to accused IAS officers and other government officials named in the chargesheets after deducting their commissions.
According to the ED, Malik Jewellers received ₹58 crore, KLG Group (KLG Jewels, KLG Infra and KLG & Co) ₹26 crore, MB Gold Traders ₹5 crore, Sham Jewellers ₹3 crore and Sunder Jewellers ₹3 crore from intermediate shell entities allegedly floated by Rishi. Along with these jewellers, the ED had also raided the premises of Gourav Kansal, who allegedly acted as a middleman in routing and laundering the proceeds of the crime.
Pertinent to mention, ₹550 crore had been siphoned off from Haryana government accounts, ₹116 crore from the Chandigarh MC and ₹75 crore from the CREST through fake fixed deposit receipts.
The case came to light in February 2026 when the discrepancies in the bank balances of the Haryana development and panchayat department, maintained with IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank, had surfaced. Later, the Chandigarh MC and CREST had also detected the missing funds in their accounts.
Two FIRs were then registered in Haryana and two in Chandigarh were taken over by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
The ED’s money-laundering investigation was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by Haryana police.
Earlier, the ED had arrested four accused persons in connection with the alleged money-laundering offence. The agency has also attached, seized or frozen movable and immovable assets worth ₹211 crore and filed a prosecution complaint against 14 accused persons before the PMLA Special Court in Panchkula.
A recent CBI chargesheet detailed allegations of Rishi spending money on a woman dancer he allegedly met last year. According to the chargesheet, he allegedly paid her ₹10 lakh a month, contributed towards and purchased a house worth ₹4 crore for her, and took vacations with her in hotels in Chandigarh, Goa and Dubai.
The chargesheet also alleges that gold coins were sent to the house of an IAS officer and that proceeds of crime were used to settle hotel bills and organise parties.
