One Bride, 13 Grooms: MP Men Duped Of Lakhs Under Pretext Of Marriage; Probe Launched

Naidunia Representative, Narsinghpur: Several young men who had the desire to marry were defrauded of their savings after being targeted by a gang of fraudsters that allegedly used a woman posing as a prospective bride.

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13 Men Duped Of Lakhs In Narsinghpur

A major scam has come to light in Narsinghpur district, where around 13 young men were allegedly duped of lakhs of rupees and jewellery after being promised marriage to the same woman.

According to a report by Naidunia, two middlemen orchestrated the scam by contacting unmarried men in various villages and introducing them to a prospective bride from Vijayraghavgarh, Katni. The accused allegedly extorted a huge amount of money and jewellery under the pretext of engagement and Phaldan (pre-wedding) ceremonies.

However, once the rituals were completed and the money was collected, both middlemen switched off their phones. The fraud came to light when the victims' families travelled to Vijayraghavgarh to finalise wedding dates, only to find both the middlemen and the bride missing.

Realising that they had become victims of fraud, the affected men, accompanied by their family members, approached the Superintendent of Police (SP) office to lodge a written complaint.

Victims Detail Scam, Hand Over Video Evidence to Police

A resident victim revealed that fraudsters extorted Rs 60,000 in cash along with a gold mangalsutra from him under the pretext of engagement and Phaldan rituals, after showing him the prospective bride in Padriya village.

Similar complaints emerged from nearby areas, with a youth from Dhamna duped of Rs 50,000 and another from Mudia defrauded of Rs 60,000. Cash and jewellery were extracted from other victims in the same manner.

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The men handed over video recordings of the engagement and Phaldan ceremonies to the police as evidence.

After receiving multiple complaints, police have launched an investigation into the matter. Sub-Inspector of the Tendukheda Police Station has been assigned a detailed investigation.

As the victims hail from multiple police jurisdictions, officials confirmed that all complaints will be combined and the case will be thoroughly investigated. Police stated that the full scope of the operation, its pattern, and the involvement of an organised gang will be determined only after the investigation.