A gang operating in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh, that defrauded families under the guise of arranging marriages was exposed when suspicious victims took two of the accused to the Mirzamurad police station on Saturday evening.
According to SHO Pramod Pandey, an FIR was registered based on a complaint filed by Bhanu Jaga, a resident of Rajgarh in Alwar district, Rajasthan. Jaga accused the gang of orchestrating a fake marriage between his brother, Girish, and a woman later identified as Rekha, who posed as a bride under the name Puja.
The gang had demanded Rs1.8 lakh from the victim’s family to arrange the marriage. After the payment, the marriage ceremony was conducted at a hotel, and Puja, along with another woman named Kiran, accompanied the family back to Rajasthan.
As they drove through the Rakhouna area near Mirzamurad, Puja pretended to have a stomach ache and tried to exit the vehicle. Sensing something suspicious, the family diverted to a local police outpost. At the station, Puja claimed she was being abducted, but when police reviewed wedding videos presented by the family, the story unraveled.
Further questioning revealed that Puja was actually Rekha, a mother of four from Durgawati, Bihar. Kiran, also from Bihar, was arrested alongside her. Two accomplices, Nandlal and Nisha, are currently on the run.
The gang would allegedly follow the groom’s vehicle after the wedding, waiting for an opportunity to extract the bride and flee, but their plan failed due to the family’s quick thinking.
Police have confirmed that the operation targeted bride-seekers primarily from Rajasthan, luring them with the promise of a quick marriage in exchange for money. The investigation is ongoing, and efforts are underway to apprehend the remaining suspects.
