MP Police Bust Marriage Scam Involving Fake Brides, Two Arrested

Dewas: The Madhya Pradesh police have busted a marriage racket by arresting a couple who allegedly duped 42 grooms and their families after promising to marry them to women from an orphanage at a mass wedding ceremony in Dewas, an official said on Monday.

A case was registered late Sunday night against four persons, including the arrested accused, Mukesh and Sunita Das Bairagi, and a search has been launched for the other two, who are absconding, sub-inspector Rahul Parmar of Dewas Bank Note Press police station told PTI.

According to the police, the fraudsters convinced unsuspecting families that prospective brides were from an orphanage in Indore.

"Initial investigation revealed that the accused downloaded photos of women from social media platforms and presented them as prospective brides to the families," Parmar said.

They charged the victims anywhere between Rs 10,000 and Rs 25,000 to arrange marriages at a mass wedding ceremony at a religious site in Dewas, he said.

The scam unravelled on Sunday when the grooms and their families, hailing from various districts, arrived at the designated venue and waited until 10 pm for the brides and organisers to arrive, police said.

On realising they had been cheated, the victims approached the police station to lodge a complaint.

While eyewitnesses and victims estimated that 42 grooms had been conned, an official noted that only 10 families had formally approached the police so far, as many were hesitant, fearing social stigma.

A probe into the marriage fraud is underway, the official said.