Chandigarh, April 25 -- The Haryana government has dismissed a development and panchayat department official, Naresh Kumar, over his alleged involvement in the misappropriation of public funds. Naresh, a superintendent rank official in the department, was dismissed from service for his role in the alleged offence of misappropriation without holding a departmental inquiry. Cited as Naresh Buwani by the anti-corruption bureau (ACB) in its report, officials said that he is an accused in the criminal case pertaining to embezzlement of public funds in alleged collusion with representatives of the IDFC First Bank, now being investigated by the CBI. The CBI took over the probe from the ACB on April 9. The central agency is probing large-scale, multi-layered financial fraud involving fraudulent banking operations, fictitious transactions, and systematic diversion of government funds into shell entities owned directly or indirectly by the accused and their associates, thereby, causing substantial loss to the public exchequer and undermining the integrity of public financial systems. Naresh's dismissal order of April 23 signed by additional chief secretary, development and panchayats, Vijayendra Kumar invokes Article 311(2)(b) of the Constitution, allowing termination without a departmental inquiry on the grounds that such an inquiry is not reasonably practicable. "Such dismissal ordinarily disqualifies him from future government employment,'' the order said. As per the dismissal order, Naresh acted as a crucial link between co-accused, bank officials, and other private individuals, playing an active role in coordinating and executing the fraudulent scheme, thereby demonstrating that he was not a passive participant but an integral part of a well-organised criminal conspiracy aimed at siphoning off government funds. "The material on record indicates that forged and fabricated documents were utilised for opening and operating bank accounts and for facilitating illegal transfer of funds, thereby lending apparent legitimacy to fraudulent transactions and enabling diversion of government funds into private accounts held in various banks,'' the order reads. The order said that during the course of investigation, it has emerged that Naresh, in collusion with private individuals and other co-accused persons, was actively involved in the creation and operation of a firm- Swastik Desh Projects, which was not a genuine commercial entity but was primarily used as a conduit for illegal diversion and transfer of government funds.The order stated that Naresh diverted significant funds from the firm's AU Small Bank account into his own and his daughter's bank accounts. He used these proceeds to purchase personal assets like vehicles and property, confirming his direct financial gain from the fraud. Citing an ACB report, the order said that it has revealed that during the course of investigation and as per statement of witnesses, Naresh Kumar got Rs.6.45 crore in his bank account in 14 tranches between November 2025 and February 2026 from the account of Swastik Desh Projects. "Naresh was given a Fortuner car (CH 01 DB 6911) as illegal gratification by former IDFC First Bank employee, Ribhav Rishi, as illegal gratification. He also purchased a house in Sector-66 B, Mohali, for Rs.1 crore in the name of his wife. All this establishes direct financial benefits and personal enrichment by Naresh from the alleged crime,'' the order said....