Video screengrab
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Lucknow: Fifteen people, including several senior government officials, were arrested after a video, which went viral on social media, purportedly showed brides garlanding themselves at a mass wedding event which was part of Mukhyamantri Samoohik Vivah Yojna in Ballia district of Uttar Pradesh.
According to the sources, the mass wedding event took place on January 26 during which as many as 568 couples got married in the presence of local BJP MLA Ketaki Singh.
While some grooms were seen garlanding the brides in the video, there were several brides who were seen garlanding themselves as there were no grooms for them.
The faces of the brides are not seen in the video, not even during the time of applying vermilion by the grooms.
Sources said that the brides who were brought to the event were promised Rs 500. The purpose for them to participate in the mass wedding apparently was to take the money given to the couples who got married under the scheme.
One of the grooms who was a minor said that he had gone to the venue to watch the event and that some government officials lured him to become groom and promised to pay him Rs 500.
The state government provides Rs 51,000 for every marriage. The bride gets Rs 35,000, while Rs 16,000 is for wedding material and other expenses.
The mass wedding event was held on the ground of an inter-college in Maniar area in the district.
As the video went viral, a probe was ordered and eight senior government officials of the social welfare department were suspended after being found to be involved in the alleged fraud. 15 people including the officials were arrested.
Sources said that the money for the beneficiaries was yet to be released.
Ketaki Singh, who was seen showering flower petals on the couples in the event, said that she was unaware of the fraud and sought a thorough investigation into the same.
A senior district official said that teams had been formed to investigate the matter and did not rule out the possibility of more arrests. He also suspected that an organised gang could be behind the fraud.