Panchkula, June 18
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested former Municipal Corporation Panchkula commissioner Ram Kumar Singh, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, over the alleged misappropriation of government funds worth around ₹79.46 crore.
The agency said Ram Kumar Singh, who was serving as commissioner at the time of the alleged fraud, was involved in the diversion of funds from the Municipal Corporation Panchkula’s account held at the Sector 32 branch of IDFC First Bank in Chandigarh.
According to the CBI, investigators found that the account had been opened in violation of Haryana government finance department guidelines. Officials alleged that information entered in the account opening documents was designed to conceal transactions that were later used to siphon off public funds.
The agency alleged that the officer handed over multiple signed cheques to bank officials through intermediaries under the pretext of creating fixed deposits. However, no deposits were created and the funds were instead transferred to shell companies allegedly controlled by the accused bank officials.
The CBI said the fraud was carried out with the knowledge and active participation of the then municipal commissioner and the senior accountant of the civic body. The senior accountant was arrested earlier in the investigation.
Searches were conducted at Singh’s residences in Chandigarh and Karnal, where investigators said they recovered documents linked to the case.
The CBI took over the investigation from Haryana’s State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau following a request from the state government.
Officials said the alleged fraud at the Panchkula municipal corporation forms part of a wider banking scam involving the Sector 32 branch of IDFC First Bank, in which approximately ₹504 crore belonging to eight Haryana government departments was allegedly diverted through forged or non-existent fixed deposits and debit notes before being routed to shell entities.
So far, the CBI has filed chargesheets against 17 people, including six bank officials from IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank, three government officials, two companies and six private individuals.
The agency has also taken over investigations into two related cases linked to the Chandigarh Smart City project and the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST). Chargesheets have already been filed in both cases.
The CBI said it remains committed to tracing the flow of the allegedly misappropriated funds and bringing all those involved to justice.
