Chandigarh: The Chandigarh municipal corporation (MC) is set to present a detailed report on the Rs 116-crore fake fixed deposit (FD) fraud case at the upcoming general house meeting scheduled for Wednesday.Sources said senior officials will brief councillors on the full sequence of events that led to the alleged financial irregularities, the steps taken by the MC to recover the funds, action initiated against employees and staff, the complaint lodged with Chandigarh Police, and the current status of the amount transferred from Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) to the MC. All relevant records and facts related to the matter will form part of the presentation.According to MC sources, the issue came to light when the bank informed the civic body that the fixed deposit receipts (FDRs) in question did not exist in the IDFC First Bank system and were, in fact, fake. These FDRs were allegedly issued in 2025 by the then manager of IDFC First Bank’s Sector 32 branch.Further scrutiny of bank statements revealed three payment entries dated April 11, 2025, and Sept 1, 2025, totalling Rs 8.22 crore, which did not match MC records of payments made to agencies. This discrepancy raised suspicions and prompted a detailed probe. During the initial examination, officials found several debit and credit entries to be questionable while comparing original bank statements with records and statements submitted to the MC at the time of the Smart City project’s closure. The statement provided in March 2025 was found to contain several suspected fake entries.Sources said details of 11 suspicious FDRs amounting to Rs 116.84 crore were identified. These FDs, shown as active assets in the handed-over records, did not feature in the official bank statement obtained from IDFC First Bank on February 24, 2026. Following subsequent deliberations between the bank and the MC, the bank remitted Rs 121.14 crore to the MC.“The MC has clearly informed IDFC First Bank that the amount remitted is subject to reconciliation and audit and should not be treated as final settlement. Any dues, if found, will be claimed after reconciliation,” sources said.Anticipating questions from councillors, the MC will also place on record internal files and the complaint submitted to Chandigarh Police, based on which an FIR was registered. Details of disciplinary action taken against employees involved, along with correspondence sent to the Director General of Audit (Central), U.T., Chandigarh—seeking a special audit of CSCL’s finances before and after its closure—will also be shared. The special audit has been sought to ascertain financial irregularities and assess any loss incurred by the municipal corporation, officials said.
