Rs 80 lakh of diverted CREST funds used to buy Goa property: CBI

A company linked to the wife of Navneet Kumar Srivastava, an Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer and former CEO of the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST), allegedly used Rs 80 lakh out of the Rs 95 lakh funds diverted from CREST to purchase immovable property in Canacona, Goa, the Central Bureau of Investigation alleged in a recent chargesheet filed before a Special CBI court in Chandigarh on September 11.

The agency further alleged that Vipam Consultancy Pvt Ltd, of which Srivastava’s wife Anupam is a director and holds 95 per cent shares, had “no genuine business dealings” with CREST. According to the CBI, while working as Additional CEO/CEO of CREST, Navneet allegedly worked together with bankers Ribhav Rishi, Abhay Kumar, Seema Dhiman and others between August 21, 2023 and November 30, 2025, in Chandigarh and elsewhere, “to carry out illegal activities”.

These allegedly included diverting government money belonging to CREST, changing registered email and mobile details, using fake bank documents and bank statements, making unauthorised withdrawals or payments, and hiding the resulting financial loss.

According to the CBI chargesheet, while working as a public servant and as the CEO/Additional CEO and authorised signatory of CREST, Navneet allegedly misused his official position to obtain financial benefits for himself and others.

These benefits allegedly included a demand draft of Rs 5 lakh made in his own name, transfer of Rs 95 lakh from the CAPCO Fintech Services account to Vipam Consultancy Pvt. Ltd., and cash or other improper benefits received through people associated with co-accused Ribhav Rishi.

Despite not having genuine business dealings or activity with CREST, Vipam Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. allegedly received Rs 95 lakh fraudulently diverted from CREST between November 14, 2024, and February 14, 2025, according to the CBI.

The chargesheet alleged that the company later used Rs 80 lakh of the Rs 95 lakh to buy immovable property in Canacona, Goa. It further alleges that the company was involved in providing an undue financial benefit to Navneet, helping him and his family obtain and retain financial gains.

“It can be easily interpreted that Anupam Srivastava has received the bribe on behalf of her husband Navneet Kumar Srivastava, and hence, abetted the offence under the PC Act, and thereby, committed an offence punishable under Section 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), read with Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023,” the CBI alleged.

According to the chargesheet, the source of the money, the way it was transferred through a company that received most of the allegedly diverted CREST funds, the lack of any genuine business dealings between CREST and the company, and the electronic and oral evidence together show that there is a prima facie case of “criminal misconduct”.

Srivastava allegedly deleted WhatsApp messages from his mobile phone that he had exchanged with Rahul Kumar and others involved in the alleged diversion and delivery of the misappropriated money. He also allegedly destroyed the mobile phone he was using at the time, knowing it contained evidence related to the alleged offences.

According to the investigators, further investigation found that Vipam Consultancy had no genuine business dealings with CREST and did not carry out any real business activity that could explain the large amounts of money it received from CAPCO Fintech Services.

The money was later used, among other things, to buy property in Goa and to transfer money to the personal account of Anupam Srivastava. Taken together, the CBI said, the fraudulent withdrawals from CREST accounts, the transfer of money through CAPCO, the lack of any genuine reason for these transfers, and the later use of the money through a company controlled by the family prima facie show that Navneet knowingly received, kept or benefited from “property constituting the proceeds of the scheduled criminal activity”.

The evidence allegedly shows that Navneet knowingly participated in diverting and hiding CREST funds and received financial benefits through the account of Vipam Consultancy Pvt. Ltd. The chargesheet further alleges that this was not merely a case of negligence or failure to properly supervise his work.

The chargesheet alleges that Srivastava was abetted by his wife. According to the CBI, although the investigation against the above-mentioned accused has been completed, some aspects of the case still need to be investigated.

These include tracing how the money was transferred further, following the money trail beyond the transactions already identified, and finding out who ultimately benefited from the funds. The chargesheet has been filed for offences of criminal conspiracy, destruction of evidence, criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery and using forged documents under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), as well as bribery, criminal misconduct, and abetment under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2018.

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