The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested two former banking executives, Shamim Dar, the then area head of IDFC First Bank, and Charanjeet Singh Randhawa, the then branch manager of AU Small Finance Bank’s Mohali branch, for their alleged involvement in a ₹504-crore financial fraud involving Haryana government funds.The arrests, made on Monday, come after investigators uncovered incriminating evidence showing that both officials abused their positions to facilitate the opening of unauthorised bank accounts and execute fraudulent transactions.The arrests, made on Monday, come after investigators uncovered incriminating evidence showing that both officials abused their positions to facilitate the opening of unauthorised bank accounts and execute fraudulent transactions. These accounts were designed to divert surplus public funds meant for secure investments.Both accused were produced before a special CBI court in Panchkula as the federal probe agency found a web of institutional manipulation.The arrest of the two bank officials stems from a wider investigation that the CBI took over from the Haryana State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau following an official request from the state government in May.The scam was orchestrated at the IDFC First Bank branch in Sector 32, Chandigarh, where ₹504 crore belonging to eight Haryana government departments was systematically siphoned off. The accused issued forged or non-existent fixed deposits (FDs) and debit notes, subsequently routing the diverted state money into shell entities.With the two latest arrests, the CBI has so far chargesheeted a total of 17 individuals in connection with the scam.The syndicate spans a network of complicity, including six bank officials from both IDFC First Bank and AU Small Finance Bank, three Haryana government public servants who allegedly compromised state oversight, two implicated corporate companies, and six private individuals who assisted in laundering the stolen public funds.