Rs 590-crore IDFC First fraud: How four key accused channelled Rs 300 crore to private firm

On Tuesday, IDFC First Bank stated that it had repaid 100 percent of the principal and interest to the affected Haryana government departments, releasing a total of Rs 583 crore.

• Four arrested in Rs 590-crore IDFC First Bank fraud case
• Rs 300 crore siphoned to private firm linked to accused
• Bank repaid Rs 583 crore to Haryana government departments

Did our AI summary help?

Four individuals, including two former employees of IDFC First Bank, played a central role in the Rs 590-crore fraud at the bank’s Chandigarh branch, the Haryana State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) revealed.

The accused — Ribhav Rishi, Abhay Kumar, Swati Singla and Abhishek Singla — were arrested by Haryana Police as part of the ongoing probe. Addressing the media in Panchkula, ACB Director General AS Chawla said the fraud involved siphoning off nearly Rs 300 crore into a private firm’s account, with most of the funds belonging to Haryana government departments.

Who are the accused?

Rishi and Abhay Kumar are former employees of IDFC First Bank. Rishi headed the bank’s Sector 32 branch until about six months ago, while Abhay served as a relationship manager and resigned around August last year.

IDFC First Bank says returned Rs 583 crore to Haryana govt but lender's shares aren't rising: Here's why

Swati Singla and her brother Abhishek Singla ran a partnership firm, Swastik Desh Project, which investigators say was used to route the diverted funds. According to Chawla, Swati holds a 75 percent stake in the firm and Abhishek owns the remaining 25 percent. Swati is also Abhay Kumar’s wife.

“This is the main private company into whose accounts most of the funds — nearly Rs 300 crore — were transferred, and later moved further,” Chawla said. While the bulk of the money belonged to Haryana government departments, a smaller portion may have come from Chandigarh administration accounts, The Indian Express quoted him as saying.

How was the fraud carried out?

Investigators allege that Rishi and Abhay masterminded the fraud. Nearly Rs 590 crore belonging to Haryana government departments had been parked as fixed deposits at IDFC First Bank’s Chandigarh branch. Of this, around Rs 300 crore was transferred to the Swastik Desh Project’s account and subsequently routed onward.

Chawla noted the unusual cross-border movement of funds. “The IDFC First Bank branch is in Chandigarh, the Haryana government departments are located in state territory, and the AU Small Finance Bank branch where the money was transferred is in Mohali,” he said.

Probe and recovery

An FIR was registered by the ACB after consultations with authorities in Chandigarh and Mumbai. Although IDFC First Bank initially approached police in those cities to file a complaint, Haryana authorities decided to register the case in Panchkula since the funds belonged to the state government and the alleged fraud likely occurred within Haryana’s jurisdiction.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted under the supervision of senior IPS officer Ganga Ram Punia. “The SIT acted swiftly and within 24 hours arrested the two main accused, Ribhav Rishi and Abhay Kumar, after collecting technical evidence,” Chawla said.

On Tuesday, IDFC First Bank stated that it had repaid 100 percent of the principal and interest to the affected Haryana government departments, releasing a total of Rs 583 crore.

“The bank has already returned the money to the Haryana government. This proves that the hard-earned money of the people of Haryana is safe,” Chawla said.

However, he added that the investigation is expected to be prolonged. “The case involves a large volume of funds and multiple departments. The probe will be extensive,” he said.