Rs 593cr fraud: CBI takes 6 more accused into custody

Chandigarh: A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team on Tuesday took custody of six more accused in the Rs 593-crore misappropriation of Haryana govt funds from IDFC First Bank.The accused taken into custody include builder Vikram Wadhwa, jewellery shop owner Rajan Singh Katodaia, and bank employees Arun Sharma, Seema Dhiman, Anuj Kaushal and Priyanka. The bank employees were earlier arrested by the Haryana state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau last month and were lodged in Ambala jail.Wadhwa, who had evaded arrest by Haryana Police, was earlier arrested by Chandigarh Police in a related case involving diversion of funds from a smart city project and was lodged in Chandigarh jail. This is his first formal arrest in the Rs 593-crore fraud case registered by the state vigilance bureau in Feb.A special CBI court in Panchkula granted three-day CBI custody of all six accused. The court had on Monday extended the custody of prime accused Rishav Rishi to enable his confrontation with other accused. The CBI had also sought production warrants for the six accused.The agency told the court that the accused need to be questioned about their roles in the diversion of funds.The case pertains to the alleged misappropriation of Rs 593 crore belonging to various Haryana govt departments, parked in an IDFC First Bank branch in Sector 32, Chandigarh. The accused allegedly siphoned off funds through multiple transactions with the connivance of bank officials, including Rishi.Though the diverted money was later restored to govt accounts, Haryana govt ordered a probe by the vigilance bureau, which arrested 15 persons before the case was handed over to the CBI in March.