Hindustan Times · 16 Sept, 23:57

Banking scam redux?: <span class='webrupee'>₹</span>224-crore panchayat funds parked in private banks sans Haryana nod

Banking scam redux?: ₹224-crore panchayat funds parked in private banks sans Haryana nod

About 124 acres of panchayat land was sold to IOCL by Bal Jattan gram panchayat, while Khandra gram panchayat sold about 56 acres to IOCL for a combined sum of ₹383.45 crore, the amount being received in the saving bank accounts of the gram panchayats in the Punjab National Bank

Months after the multi-crore IDFC First Bank financial scandal shook the Haryana government, another episode of alleged irregularities in the handling of public funds and their deposit in private sector banks without the approval of competent authority has surfaced.

Documents accessed by Hindustan Times showed that two gram panchayats of Panipat district, Bal Jattan and Khandra, received a hefty amount of about ₹277 crore and ₹106.44 crore respectively from the sale of panchayat land to the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL).

Official records showed that the funds were subsequently placed in multiple fixed deposits (FDs) with a number of banks and FD receipts were created without the prior approval of the competent authority, a requirement made stringently mandatory by the finance department on May 18, 2026, after the misappropriation of public funds in the IDFC First Bank episode. The Bal Jattan funds were placed in multiple FDs in July 2026, and the Khandra panchayat funds were placed in FDs in July, August, and September 2026.

A high-level committee, led by additional chief secretary (ACS) of finance Arun Gupta, to review the state’s banking policy and unauthorised fund transfers, was set up after the IDFC First Bank scandal. The committee recommended that quotations for FDs be invited from all empanelled banks, and that a comparative statement be prepared by the seniormost accounts officer posted. This officer will make recommendations in accordance with the prescribed guidelines, and the proposal shall be approved by the head of the office.

Instructions in this regard were issued by the ACS, finance, on May 18, 2026, to all the administrative secretaries, heads of the departments, managing directors of PSEs, divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners (DCs).

Documents revealed that Bal Jattan gram panchayat had placed 16 FDs with various banks aggregating to ₹264.96 crore. From this amount, 10 FDs were placed in private sector banks at varying interest rates ranging from 6.50% to 7.40%. In fact, the variation in the interest rates at which some of the FDs were booked in one particular private sector bank ranged between 7% to 7.30%, as per official documents.

Records show that an amount of about ₹165 crore of the Bal Jattan panchayat was booked as FDs with four private sector banks. Similarly, out of nine FDs created in various banks by the Khandra gram panchayat for a total amount of ₹101.81 crore, five amounting to about ₹60 crore were placed in two private sector banks.

Panipat DC Harish Vashisht, when asked about the alleged irregularities, said that the government is investigating the matter. The DC, however, in a September 10 communication to the ACS, development and panchayats wrote: “Going through all the relevant record, it has been found that sarpanch gram panchayat Bal Jattan and Khandra had created fixed deposit in various banks without intimation and permission from the undersigned (the DC himself).”

Vashisht further wrote that if the existing FDs are prematurely cancelled, then this premature liquidation will impose substantial interest loss, which is direct and avoidable loss to the government exchequer. “Directions have been issued to all the concerned banks to inform this office immediately about the status of the above FDRs and that they must not prematurely liquidate FDRs without prior permission of the competent authority,’’ the DC wrote. The DC has also sought to know whether these FDRs should be continued or prematurely cancelled, and immediately new FDRs made.

The DC’s communication said that following the receipt of money in the savings bank accounts of the panchayats, the process for creating FDs with banks authorised by the finance department’s instructions dated May 18, 2026, was initiated.

“Prevailing rates of interest were obtained from various authorised banks through the lead district manager of PNB, Panipat. After the receipt of the interest rates from the authorised banks, the process for finalising the bank-wise allocation and amount to be deposited, keeping in view the respective rates of interest offered by the banks, was completed. The proposal was duly considered and approved on file on August 24, 2026,” the DC wrote.

The DC wrote that when the Panipat district development and panchayat officer issued directions on September 7 to transfer ₹383.45 crore to the concerned banks for the creation of FDs, PNB officials informed him on September 9 that they have only ₹90 crore in the form of five FDs. These FDs had been created on July 16, 2026, from the savings bank account of the Bal Jattan gram panchayat.

- Hitender Rao is Senior Associate Editor covering the state of Haryana. Over the past three decades, he has reported on politics, governance, economy, migration, public policy and legal affairs. His work focuses on investigative and data driven journalism with a particular focus on government accountability, public institutions, corporate regulations and judiciary. A Fulbright- Humphrey scholar, he has covered elections, legislative developments, public finances, infrastructure, law enforcement and policy formulation, widely reporting on issues that shape governance and public life across the state through in depth reporting and analysis. He has also written extensively on migration issues and public administration focusing on how government decisions, institutions and corporate sector influence citizens and public policy.Read More