In the Rs 83-crore Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) fraud case, the CBI has arrested senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Navneet Kumar Srivastava, the then Chief Executive Officer of CREST, for his alleged role in the diversion of public funds from the society’s accounts maintained with IDFC First Bank’s branch in Sector 32 here.Srivastava, who had earlier been suspended by the Centre on the recommendation of Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, was on Wednesday evening produced before the Special CBI Court here, which remanded him in three-day CBI custody for further interrogation.The arrest marks the first action against a senior Chandigarh Administration officer in the case and comes amid the CBI’s widening probe into what investigators believe is part of a larger network behind the multi-crore frauds involving Chandigarh and Haryana Government funds routed through the same bank branch.Speaking to The Tribune, a senior CBI official said investigation revealed that funds parked in three CREST bank accounts were fraudulently siphoned to various shell companies and subsequently converted for the personal use of beneficiaries, causing an estimated loss of nearly Rs 75 crore to the Chandigarh Administration-run society during the period when Srivastava was heading it.Investigators disclosed that part of the proceeds of crime was diverted to a private company in which Srivastava’s wife and a close relative were directors.The federal agency said Srivastava’s role surfaced after scrutiny of financial transactions, bank records and money trails linked to the diversion of funds.The arrest is being viewed as the most significant development in the investigation since the scam surfaced earlier this year.The CREST fraud was unearthed after reconciliation of bank accounts maintained with IDFC First Bank revealed around 300 unauthorised transactions. The investigators found a principal shortfall of Rs 75.16 crore and an additional interest loss of Rs 7.88 crore, taking the total loss to Rs 83.04 crore. Forged bank statements were allegedly sent from official email IDs of bank officials to conceal the fraud for an extended period.The case forms part of the larger IDFC First Bank scandal that also includes the Rs 117-crore Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL)-Municipal Corporation fraud and the Rs 550-crore Haryana Government fund scam.Former CREST Project Director Sukhwinder Singh Abrol and accountant Sahil Kukkar, who were arrested earlier, had already been chargesheeted. Both are currently in judicial custody.The agency recently filed its first chargesheet in the CREST case against 13 accused, including five officials of IDFC First Bank, two public servants associated with the society, two shell entities along with three of their partners/directors, and one private individual. They are also in judicial custody.The arrest comes just a day after a Chandigarh court granted default bail to businessman Vikram Wadhwa in the Chandigarh Smart City case on technical grounds related to delayed filing of the chargesheet. However, Wadhwa continues to remain in jail because he is also in judicial custody in the CREST fraud case and the Haryana Government fund scam.