The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday said it has arrested two main conspirators in an ongoing case linked to the illegal printing and supplying of a huge quantity of fake Indian currency notes which, through various other accused, reached the currency chest of Punjab National Bank (PNB) in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Source: ANI via Devdiscourse

Ajay Kumar was arrested on October 16 from Ambala in Haryana, while Harish Rounta was held on October 22 from Manali in Himachal Pradesh, the agency said. According to the NIA, both are close associates of the arrested accused Adesh Choudhary and other arrested accused in the conspiracy relating to the placement of counterfeit notes in the PNB's Civil Lines branch in Saharanpur, in case RC-02/2026/NIA/LKW.

The case began on August 29, when Sadar Bazar police in Saharanpur district received credible information about the recovery of counterfeit Indian currency notes with a face value of Rs 17.29 crore from the currency chest of PNB, Saharanpur. The involvement of three employees of the bank also surfaced during the inquiry, and they were suspended by the bank, the agency said.

The case was initially registered on August 29 at Sadar Bazar Police Station under Section 178 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, against three accused, and was re-registered by the NIA on September 3. Earlier, on September 7, 15, 20 and 22, the NIA had arrested FIR-named accused Amit Kumar and key accused Adesh Choudhary, Mukesh Kumar, Rajender and Nitu.

The agency said its investigation is ongoing to unravel the complete conspiracy and to arrest the remaining co-accused and suspects. The arrests are part of that investigation; the allegations are yet to be tested in court.