Times News NetworkChandigarh: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Chandigarh Police on Thursday produced accused Vikram Wadhwa before the UT district court and secured an additional seven days of police remand for further interrogation in the multi-crore cheating case. Wadhwa had already been in police remand for the previous five days.This time, the EOW obtained his remand in connection with a cheating case involving approximately Rs 75 crore. Prior to this, Wadhwa had been in police custody in the Rs 116.84 crore Smart City fund embezzlement case concerning the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation.Although police sought 10 days’ remand, the court granted seven days.According to sources, the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has submitted a detailed internal inquiry report running over 500 pages to the EOW. The report mentions the names of several officials associated with the Chandigarh Smart City project. Police officials are currently examining the report and scrutinising individuals identified in it. After verifying the facts, police are expected to add the names of some of these officials in the FIR.The cheating case was registered on the complaint of Sukhwinder Singh, project director, Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science and Technology Promotion Society (Crest), Sector 19, Chandigarh, filed on behalf of CEO, Crest. The complaint stated that Crest maintained its bank accounts with IDFC First Bank, Sector 32, and alleged that 272 unauthorised deposit and withdrawal transactions were detected in the Crest bank account. These transactions were flagged after comparing the original bank statements provided by IDFC First Bank with Crest’s internal records. The entries were neither initiated by the Crest accounts branch nor approved by any signing authority.Due to these unauthorised transactions, the principal shortfall was assessed at Rs 75.16 crore, while the interest impact on this amount was calculated at Rs 7.88 crore as of Feb 2, 2026. During investigation, police obtained bank statements of the Crest account as well as accounts of the accused from IDFC First Bank. Scrutiny of these statements revealed substantial financial transactions from the Crest account to the account of CAPCO Fintech Services, and further transfers into the personal account of accused Vikram Wadhwa and the account of Martell Buildwell LLP. Police clarified that Martell Buildwell LLP is a partnership firm in which Wadhwa is a partner and authorised signatory.Police also said that production warrants and cross-examination of the other three accused — Ribhav Rishi, Seema Dhiman, and Abhya Kumar — are required as part of ongoing investigation.According to the police, Wadhwa disclosed that he had met Ribhav Rishi several years ago through Rakesh Kumar Rishi, then a senior manager at Punjab National Bank, Sector 17. Rishi, who worked at IDFC First Bank at the time, allegedly told Wadhwa that he handled bank accounts of several govt departments from Chandigarh and Haryana, with crores deposited in them. Rishi purportedly proposed that this money could be temporarily used for investment purposes and later returned to the accounts when required by making corresponding entries.The EOW continues its investigation into the financial trail and the roles of all individuals involved.MSID:: 129701949 413 |
