Father of three children marries at mass wedding for Rs 51,000, govt benefits in UP

A 35-year-old man, father of three children, married a 24-year-old woman during the Chief Minister’s mass wedding program in Uttar Pradesh's Amroha to claim government benefits. The fraud came to light after govt officials received a tip-off following the event, which took place on Sunday. A fraud case was registered against both the man and the woman.

Kapil Kumar, a resident of Salempur village, allegedly married Priyanka Rani from Bawanpura after her family insisted that he "step in when the original groom failed to show up." They wanted to get financial assistance of Rs 51,000 provided to newlyweds from below the poverty line under the government scheme.

The district’s chief development officer (CDO) swiftly took action, suspending the gram panchayat secretary for negligence and ordering legal proceedings against both Kumar and Priyanka. Additionally, the gifts distributed to the couple during the ceremony including utensils and other household essentials were seized by officials.

District Social Welfare Officer Pankhuri Jain confirmed the suspension, and said, "The usual procedure is that the village development officer concerned verifies the applicants of the scheme, and only then can they avail of the govt benefits".

Kumar later admitted to knowing the bride’s family and confessed that he agreed to help them.