42 Grooms Duped in Fake Mass Wedding Scam, MP Couple Arrested

Police in Madhya Pradesh have uncovered a bizarre marriage racket in Dewas after a couple allegedly cheated at least 42 prospective grooms and their families by promising them brides through a fake mass wedding ceremony .

The accused, identified as Mukesh and Sunita Das Bairagi , were arrested after several victims approached the police when no brides or organisers turned up at the scheduled ceremony on Sunday night. Two other accused are absconding, officials said.

According to police, the gang operated by targeting unmarried men and financially vulnerable families across different districts. The accused allegedly claimed they could arrange marriages with women from an orphanage in Indore as part of a large religious mass wedding event in Dewas.

To gain the families’ trust, the accused reportedly downloaded photographs of women from social media and presented them as prospective brides. Families were then asked to pay amounts ranging from ₹10,000 to ₹25,000 as registration and marriage arrangement charges.

Victims were instructed to arrive at a religious venue in Dewas for the ceremony. However, after waiting for hours until nearly 10 pm, the grooms and their relatives realised they had been duped when neither the brides nor the organisers appeared .

Sub-inspector Rahul Parmar of Dewas Bank Note Press police station said a case was registered late Sunday night against four persons. Police suspect the racket may be larger than initially believed .

While eyewitnesses estimated that around 42 grooms were cheated, only 10 families have officially lodged complaints so far , as several victims are reportedly reluctant to come forward due to social embarrassment and stigma .

Police said further investigation into the fraud network is underway.