CBI arrests ex-CREST CEO Navneet Srivastava in `75 crore fund scam

In a major development in the ongoing CREST fund misappropriation probe, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested senior Indian Forest Service (IFoS) officer Navneet Srivastava, who was the Chief Executive Officer of the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) at the time of the alleged fraud. Srivastava was produced before the Special Judge, CBI, Chandigarh, and remanded to three days of police custody.

The arrest follows revelations about his role during the investigation. According to the CBI, funds parked in three CREST bank accounts maintained with IDFC First Bank in Chandigarh were fraudulently misappropriated and diverted to various shell companies.
The proceeds were allegedly diverted for personal use by the beneficiaries, resulting in a loss of approximately `75 crore to CREST during Srivastava’s tenure.

The investigation further revealed that a portion of the proceeds of crime was routed into the account of a private company in which Srivastava’s wife and a close relative are directors.
CREST, the nodal agency of the Chandigarh administration for promoting renewable energy, solar power projects, and related initiatives, maintained the accounts at the IDFC First Bank branch in Sector 32. The alleged diversion involved collusion with bank officials and the use of shell entities to siphon public funds intended for green energy projects.comes days after the CBI filed its first chargesheet in the `75.34 crore CREST case before the Special CBI Court.

The chargesheet named 13 accused, including five IDFC First Bank officials, two CREST public servants, former Project Director Sukhwinder Singh Abrol and accountant Sahil Kukkar, as well as private individuals and shell companies. Chandigarh Police earlier arrested Abrol and Kukkar. 

The CREST scam forms part of a larger series of alleged frauds linked to IDFC First Bank accounts involving government departments and entities such as the Chandigarh Smart City project and Municipal Corporation Chandigarh, with total alleged losses running into hundreds of crores.

Srivastava, an IFoS officer, had been removed as CREST CEO earlier and was subsequently suspended by the Central Government in April this year in connection with the probe. His arrest marks the first custodial action by the CBI against a senior serving or former official directly heading CREST.

The agency is continuing its investigation to trace the full money trail, identify all beneficiaries, and examine the role of other individuals and entities. Further arrests cannot be ruled out as the probe deepens into the alleged civil servant-bank nexus.