CBI arrests senior IAS officer Pankaj Aggarwal in Haryana fund misappropriation case

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested senior IAS officer Pankaj Aggarwal, who was serving as Principal Secretary in the Departments of School Education and Agriculture, in connection with an alleged large-scale misappropriation of government funds in Haryana.

Aggarwal was arrested on Monday and is expected to be produced before a court. The case was taken over by the CBI at the request of the Haryana government.

Allegations of misuse of government accounts

According to investigators, funds from accounts maintained by the Haryana School Shiksha Pariyojna Parishad (HSSPP) and the Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board (HSAMB) at the Sector 32 branch of IDFC First Bank in Chandigarh were allegedly diverted through irregular transactions.

The CBI stated that the accounts were opened in violation of existing Finance Department guidelines, and funds were subsequently transferred beyond prescribed limits during Aggarwal’s tenure as Principal Secretary.

Preliminary findings suggest that fraudulent transactions through these accounts led to a loss of approximately ₹60.54 crore to the state exchequer.

Wider investigation into multi-department scam

The case is part of a broader investigation into alleged financial irregularities involving multiple Haryana government departments, with total siphoned funds estimated at around ₹504 crore across eight departments. These funds were allegedly routed through shell entities.

So far, the CBI has filed chargesheets against 17 accused persons, including bank officials from IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank, state government employees, private individuals and companies.

In a related matter, senior IAS officer R.K. Singh, earlier arrested in connection with alleged irregularities involving the Municipal Corporation, Panchkula, has been remanded to judicial custody following the expiry of his police remand.

Related ongoing cases in Chandigarh

The CBI is also investigating separate cases taken over from the Chandigarh administration, including probes into the Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) project and the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST).

Chargesheets have already been filed in both cases. In the CSCL case, five bankers, one official and one private individual have been named, while in the CREST case, chargesheets cover five bankers, two officials, four private individuals and two companies. A senior Indian Forest Service (IFoS) officer has also been arrested in connection with the CREST case.

The agency said it remains committed to tracing the full trail of alleged misappropriated funds and bringing all those involved to justice.