Beed: In a case of alleged matrimonial fraud, a youth from Georai town in Beed district was cheated of ₹2.5 lakh under the pretext of arranging his marriage. The marriage fell apart within two days after the bride reportedly revealed that the alliance was part of a racket allegedly orchestrated to extort money and valuables.
Acting on a complaint filed by the groom, the Georai police launched an investigation and discovered that the bride was a minor whose age had allegedly been misrepresented using forged documents.
According to the police, the groom’s family had contacted matchmakers based in Jafrabad in Jalna district. On June 22, the youth’s father shared his son’s photograph and biodata via WhatsApp. The intermediaries subsequently shared a photograph of a young woman and asked the family to meet them near the Zahid Masjid area in Jafrabad.
On October 1, the youth and his parents travelled to Jafrabad to meet the prospective bride. During the meeting, the middlemen demanded ₹2.5 lakh to finalise the match. Desperate to arrange the wedding, the groom’s family agreed to the demand and secured an advance against the upcoming 2026-27 sugarcane-cutting season from a local sugarcane contractor (mukadam).
On the evening of October 5, the bride’s entourage arrived in Georai by car. As agreed, the groom’s family transferred ₹25,000 each via PhonePe to two designated mobile numbers and paid the remaining ₹2 lakh in cash. A priest was called to solemnise the wedding, after which the middlemen left the bride with the groom’s family.
However, within 48 hours of the wedding, the bride began insisting on returning to her parental home. When the family assured her that they would visit around Dussehra, she reportedly disclosed that the marriage was a sham allegedly orchestrated to extract cash and gold ornaments. When the groom contacted the intermediaries seeking an explanation, they allegedly evaded his calls and offered evasive replies.
The matter was subsequently reported to the police, and on October 19, the girl recorded her statement. The investigation revealed that while a forged Aadhaar card showed her age as 20, she was actually a minor. In her statement, the girl claimed that she had been brought to Georai without prior intimation and forcibly married off. She also alleged that she had been deceived.
The police produced her before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC).
“The girl was produced before us. As she is a minor, an inquiry is currently underway,” said Ashok Tangde, chairman of the Beed Child Welfare Committee.
Kishor Pawar, police inspector at Georai police station, confirmed the development. “We have received the complaint. Since the victim is a minor, appropriate legal procedure was followed and she has been shifted to a juvenile shelter home. A thorough probe into the racket is on,” he said.
