Chandigarh, February 24 – The Haryana Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has registered an FIR in connection with a ₹590-crore fraud involving accounts of the Haryana government at the IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank branch in Chandigarh, a government official said on Tuesday.
The case has been filed against bank officials, public servants, and other individuals under Section 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Sections 316 (5), 318 (4), 336 (3), 338, 340 (2) and 61 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
A day earlier, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini informed the assembly that the fraud came to light due to the vigilance of state government departments, following which the government immediately de-empaneled the bank.
Statements provided by the bank did not match the records maintained by the concerned departments, and directions have also been issued to constitute a high-level committee to conduct a detailed investigation, he said.
The Chief Minister informed the assembly during the Vidhan Sabha's budget session that IDFC First Bank had written to SEBI acknowledging irregularities committed by certain bank employees. The bank has also initiated action against the concerned employees.
He said the bank sent a letter on February 21. However, even before the government took cognizance of the matter, on February 18, it de-empaneled the bank and directed that the entire amount, along with interest, be transferred to a nationalized bank.
“The money is completely safe. Every single rupee will be recovered,” the CM said, adding that the investigation will determine whether the irregularity was committed by a bank employee or involved any other individual.
The Chief Minister said the government acted proactively in detecting the issue, as it monitors every matter with utmost seriousness.
He said a significant portion of the Haryana government's funds deposited with IDFC First Bank had been invested in fixed deposits (FDs). He said the practice of departments keeping funds in banks is not new. This has been happening earlier as well. Even during the Congress tenure, departmental funds were kept in banks. Banks are empanelled from time to time, and new banks continue to be added, he said.
The Chief Minister said the matter would be thoroughly investigated and that no one found guilty would be spared.
In the Assembly, Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Hooda described the alleged scam as a serious matter, and said “it is unfortunate that the BJP government has not taken any action against it so far”.
“The government is merely procrastinating, whereas it should have taken strict action before the bank. This massive scam was carried out by manipulating the accounts of 18 government departments. Far from taking action, the government's attitude, even in the Assembly, is so negative that it is willing to tell its lies but is unwilling to listen to the truth of the opposition,” he said.
