₹100-crore trail in IDFC First scam leads to firm owned by siblings

The Haryana State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has tracked a suspicious money trail of nearly ₹100 crore to a Chandigarh-based firm owned by a woman and her brother, dramatically widening the probe into the alleged ₹590-crore IDFC First Bank scam.

Officials confirmed that a Look Out Circular (LOC) has been issued against the woman to prevent her from leaving the country, while police teams are searching for her brother. A separate LOC has also been issued against a former manager of IDFC First Bank’s Chandigarh branch, whose role investigators describe as “central” to the unfolding case.

“We are searching for the sister and brother as part of our investigation. The LOC has been issued to alert authorities at international airports and seaports to ensure they are not able to leave the country,” a senior official said.

₹590 crore under scrutiny

At the heart of the investigation is the suspected diversion of nearly ₹590 crore deposited by various Haryana government departments in IDFC First Bank. Investigators are examining whether the funds were siphoned off using forged authorisation letters or diverted without official sanction.

“The key questions are whether bankers acted on the basis of authorisation from government departments or on their own. If letters were issued, were the officers concerned empowered to take such decisions? And was the money routed only into stock market investments or also into real estate?” a government official said.

The former branch manager, a resident of Panchkula who left the bank over six months ago, is under intense scrutiny. Bank sources confirmed his exit preceded the surfacing of the alleged irregularities.

FIR names bank staff, public servants

An FIR has been registered against employees of IDFC First Bank, AU Small Finance Bank, and unidentified public servants. The case invokes Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act to examine the role of government officials. Provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) relating to criminal breach of trust, cheating, criminal conspiracy and forgery have also been cited.

The complaint was lodged at the ACB’s Panchkula police station on February 23 following a communication from Haryana Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi.

In a statement, IDFC First Bank said its preliminary findings suggest that “certain employees of the branch acted fraudulently in clearing forged instruments and payment instructions, potentially in collusion with external parties.”

SIT formed, arrests expected

The ACB has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by a DSP-rank officer and supervised by an SP-rank officer, to fast-track the probe. Several suspects have already been questioned, and officials indicated that arrests are imminent.

The FIR stems from “serious irregularities” flagged during a departmental inquiry by the Development and Panchayats Department, which had deposited ₹50 crore in IDFC First Bank and ₹25 crore in AU Small Finance Bank in 2025.

Investigators have now brought under the scanner at least 391 suspicious transactions across more than 170 accounts over recent months. The probe spans key Haryana government departments, bank officials, and four senior IAS officers — signaling that the scandal could run deeper than initially believed.