Panchkula civic body hit by ‘FD scam’, FIR against officials of private bank

Panchkula: Days after a fraud worth Rs 590 crore allegedly involving some officials of IDFC First Bank came to light, the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), Haryana, has registered an FIR against certain officials of Kotak Mahindra Bank and ‘unknown persons' in connection with alleged "financial irregularities" related to fixed deposits (FDs) of Panchkula Municipal Corporation maintained with the bank's Sector 11 branch.According to sources, a relationship manager of the bank was arrested in this connection on Wednesday. He will be presented before a local court on Thursday.The complaint was lodged by inspector Rakesh Kumar following directions from the Haryana govt, which referred the matter to ACB for investigation after discrepancies surfaced in financial records. As per the FIR, the corporation maintained 16 fixed deposits worth Rs 145 crore, with a maturity value of around 158 crore, in Kotak Mahindra Bank. However, during reconciliation, inconsistencies were found between MC's records and the bank statements.Of the total FDs, 11 deposits amounting to more than Rs 59.5 crore matured on Feb 16, 2026. When the MC sought details, the bank provided statements on Feb 22 and March 16 this year which allegedly matched neither with each other nor with the corporation's records.Further discrepancies emerged when the bank reported a balance of only around Rs 2.1 crore in one account against the expected 50 crore. Additionally, the bank claimed there were no active term deposits, while MC's records indicated otherwise. The bank later showed a balance of over Rs 12.8 crore as of March 18, 2026, deepening the suspicion.The FIR also notes that during verification, two additional bank accounts were discovered that were not reflected in the corporation's official records.These inconsistencies have raised serious concerns about the integrity of financial transactions and possible misappropriation of funds."This depicts that the records are not in order, and there is every apprehension of financial irregularities having been committed by the said bank," it was alleged in the FIR.The civic body has also constituted a committee to examine the matter regarding reconciliation and verification of all FDRs and bank statements of the MC maintained with Kotak Mahindra Bank, Sector 11. Authorities suspect the commission of cognisable offences, including corruption, fraud, and financial mismanagement.The investigation has been assigned to inspector Varinder Kumar, who will probe the possible role of bank officials and any other individuals involved in the alleged scam. Officials said a detailed investigation is underway to ascertain the exact scale of financial irregularities and fix accountability.The FIR has been registered under Section 13(1)(a) read with 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Sections 316(5), 318(4), 336(3), 338, 340 and 61 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, at the vigilance police station in Panchkula.Bank cooperating with govt authorities Commenting on the issue, a Kotak Mahindra Bank spokesperson said, "Following instructions from the Municipal Corporation of Panchkula, Kotak Mahindra Bank initiated a detailed reconciliation of fixed deposits and linked bank accounts maintained by the Municipal Corporation. As part of this exercise, the Bank confirmed, based on records examined so far, that all account opening processes, KYC documentation, authorised signatories and instructions received from the Municipal Corporation were in order, and that the accounts and transactions were handled in strict adherence to due process and applicable banking norms. A significant portion of the amounts under review has already been reconciled with the Municipal Corporation, and the reconciliation process is continuing in an orderly manner. Further, in keeping with its governance standards and to ensure that the matter is examined independently and comprehensively, the Bank filed a formal complaint with the Panchkula Police. The bank is cooperating fully with the Municipal Corporation, govt authorities and law enforcement agencies in this process."