Forged docus to get mass marriage dole, 6 booked

GHAZIABAD: If marriages are made in heaven, they are solemnised on earth. Sometimes twice if there’s money involved.
Six migrant labourers have been booked for allegedly forging documents to get their daughters married under a government scheme and bag monetary benefits of Rs 75,000 each. At least one of these women was allegedly found to have married her husband twice to get the money.
Under the UP government’s mass marriage scheme, those registered with the labour department can apply for a Rs 75,000 monetary benefit to get their daughters married. All the six against whom FIRs were lodged had got their daughters married in Ghaziabad in November last year.
“On November 24, 2,842 marriages were solemnised by the labour department. We had also disbursed the Rs 75,000 monetary benefit to each couple,” said Ravi Srivastava, the district labour commissioner.
While sifting through the files in January this year, officials found discrepancies in various documents submitted by the six labourers. One of the Aadhaar cards had the name of the woman’s husband. This means she had been married earlier and tied the knot only to get the money,” said Srivastava.
The labour department initiated an investigation and found that the couple had exchanged vows at Kamla Nehru park.
“We issued them recovery notices. They are yet to return the money, so we had no option but to lodge a complaint against the labourers and recommend an FIR against them under relevant IPC sections,” said Srivastava.
The alleged fraud has also raised questions on the way documents are verified at various levels before government benefits are extended.
“As part of requirements, the beneficiaries also have to submit an affidavit that the information provided by them is true. We are looking at these files afresh to find out if more such frauds have been committed,” the commissioner said.
Ravi Kumar, ACP (Nandgram), said separate FIRs had been lodged against the six labourers at Sihani Gate police station. The six were booked under sections 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 406 (criminal breach of trust) of the IPC.
“We have started an investigation and a team has been formed to solve the case. Police will visit the houses of the accused and check their documents properly,” he added.
(with inputs from Avishek Kumar)