Panchkula, June 25 -- The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Saurav Sharma, a data entry operator with the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), in connection with the Rs.645-crore IDFC First Bank fraud case involving the siphoning off of Haryana government funds. He was produced by the CBI in a Panchkula court on Wednesday and sent to four day remand. Sharma, a Dera Bassi resident working in the HSPCB accounts section, allegedly collaborated with private individuals and bank officials to illegally route government money into private accounts, resulting in a loss of Rs.169 crore to the HSPCB. Seeking his custodial remand, the CBI told the court that Sharma facilitated the opening of an account in IDFC First Bank despite being aware of the finance department's guidelines. During questioning, he allegedly remained non-cooperative. The CBI claimed that analysis of his mobile phone revealed that incriminating chats and call logs had been deleted, and he failed to provide any explanation or assistance in retrieving the data. The CBI argued that it had become necessary to confront the accused with documentary and digital evidence, bank records and transaction trails collected during the investigation. According to the agency, Sharma maintained regular and unauthorised communication with representatives of private banks and had access to confidential information relating to investment proposals, maturity schedules of funds, interest rates quoted by competing banks and the movement of official files. The agency alleged that although Sharma was aware of the investment ceiling of Rs.50 crore prescribed under finance department guidelines, he deliberately omitted to disclose the same, enabling deposits beyond the permissible limit in IDFC First Bank. According to the investigation, an investment made on March 18, 2025, increased the total deposits in IDFC First Bank to Rs.67.90 crore, exceeding the prescribed limit of Rs.50 crore. Subsequently, another investment of Rs.37.78 crore was made on June 24, 2025, taking the total investment to Rs.105.68 crore. A further investment of Rs.8 crore on October 1, 2025, increased the total deposits in the bank to Rs.113.68 crore, despite the ceiling remaining unchanged at Rs.50 crore. The CBI said that between March 13, 2025, and February 13, 2026, numerous fraudulent debit transactions resulted in the siphoning off of Rs.187 crore to various entities, including shell companies allegedly controlled by the accused persons. During the same period, credit transactions amounting to Rs.17.9 crore were recorded, resulting in an overall loss of Rs.169 crore to the public exchequer....