Dewas: What was supposed to be a mass wedding ceremony in Madhya Pradesh turned into a shocking fraud after dozens of grooms arrived at the venue, only to discover that the brides they had been promised did not exist.
The case, reported by The New York Times, is part of a wider concern over marriage-related fraud in India, where families can be vulnerable to scams involving promises of suitable matches.
Grooms arrived ready for their weddings
In the Dewas case, 42 men from different parts of Madhya Pradesh reportedly travelled to the venue expecting to marry women they had been introduced to through intermediaries.
The families had allegedly been told that the prospective brides came from an orphanage in Indore. Some men were shown photographs of women on mobile phones before the ceremony, while organisers collected money from families for registration and wedding arrangements.
According to reports, the amounts paid by families ranged from around ₹12,000 to ₹25,000.
But when the grooms arrived, there were no brides and the organisers could not be contacted.
Photos allegedly taken from the internet
Police investigations indicated that photographs shown to some of the men had allegedly been downloaded from social media or the internet.
The incident left families angry and humiliated, particularly those who had travelled from villages and smaller towns with the expectation of beginning a new chapter in their sons’ lives.
Police registered complaints and began tracing those accused of organising the alleged fraud. Reports said several people were arrested as investigators worked to identify others involved.
Marriage hopes turned into a scam
The case has also highlighted how emotional hopes surrounding marriage can be exploited for financial gain.
Experts and reports on similar cases have pointed to the role of middlemen, community networks and promises of quick matches in marriage-related fraud. A 2024 mass wedding case in Ahmedabad similarly involved families paying money for a ceremony that never took place.
For the 42 families in Dewas, however, the promised wedding ended not with celebrations, but with unanswered questions, financial losses and the painful realisation that the brides they had come to meet were never coming.