JOIN USA bridegroom and about 50 of his marriage party were stranded in Rajasthan's Barmer town for a week as the would-be bride disappeared right before the ceremony, after duping him of Rs.3.75 lakh, police said Monday.
A first information report (FIR) was registered against the bride and two men who had fixed the wedding after taking the money, they added. One of the men was arrested Monday.
The incident took place in Sadar area of Barmer, some 550 km from Jaipur.
"Arjunram, a resident of Hiradesar village in Jodhpur, had come to Barmer Aug 28 to tie the knot with a girl whose identity is not being disclosed. He was accompanied by a marriage procession consisting of at least 50 people, including his parents and family members," a police officer said.
However, when they reached the wedding venue, they found that the bride and her family members were missing and her house was locked, the officer said.
He added that Arjunram and others kept waiting for the girl and her family members throughout the night, but then realised that they had been cheated by a professional gang of fraudsters.
"For fixing the marriage, two men, Veer Singh and Jetha Ram, had taken Rs.3.75 lakh from Arjunram's family members. An engagement ceremony had taken place Aug 25," said the officer.
Arjunram and several other villagers are still in Barmer. "During preliminary investigation, it has come up that the girl, Veer Singh and Jetha Ram were members of a gang involved in duping unemployed youths on pretext of marriage. We arrested Jetharam today (Monday) and are searching for others," the officer said.