Deputy Vice President of Kotak Mahindra Bank, Pushpender Singh, in collusion with Senior Accounts Officer of Panchkula Municipal Corporation (MC), Vikas Kaushik, and Relationship Manager Dilip Raghav, updated email IDs and phone numbers on the local body's accounts to conceal fraudulent activities, according to a chargesheet submitted by the investigating agency.
Authorized Account and Initial Fraud
The MC's authorized account was opened on October 27, 2018, with the email ID mcpanchkula@gmail.com in the name of the Executive Officer (Municipal Council). The first illegal account was opened on May 28, 2020, using the email ID mcpanchkola@gmail.com, where the letter 'u' in 'panchkula' was replaced with 'o'. This account, also in the name of the Executive Officer, was closed on April 6, 2022.
Subsequent Illegal Accounts
A second illegal account was opened on June 8, 2022, again under the Executive Officer's name, with the same altered email ID mcpanchkola@gmail.com. A fourth account, a legal one, was opened on August 26, 2022, but the email ID was incorrectly listed. The chargesheet states that an updated mobile number was registered for the accounts in the name of a Rajpura resident, provided by accused individuals Kapil and Dahra to Singh and Kaushik.
Forgery and Concealment
On November 11, 2023, the accused created a second email ID, mcpanchkula.sao@gmail.com, and by forging a letter, updated the email ID with Kotak Mahindra Bank. The email modification form bore Kaushik's signature, while the signature of Deputy Municipal Commissioner Deepak Sura was forged. The chargesheet notes that the MC did not receive accurate information regarding account transactions, and the accused did not set up net banking or alert systems for these accounts.
A landline number, common within the MC but not associated with any official, was updated on the accounts to create the appearance that intimation to the MC had been given on that number. The chargesheet has so far been submitted against nine accused individuals.
