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In a significant development in Gujarat, Balvant Khabad, the son of state Minister Bachubhai Khabad, was arrested on charges of involvement in a ₹71 crore scam related to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). The arrest, carried out by the Dahod police, has exposed a complex nexus involving contractors and government officials who allegedly siphoned off funds allocated for rural development projects.
Bachubhai Khabad, who represents the Devgadhbariya constituency, serves as the Minister of State for Panchayat and Agriculture in the Gujarat government. His son, Balvant Khabad, was taken into custody on Saturday alongside Darshan Patel, the former Taluka Development Officer (TDO) in Dahod district. With these arrests, the total number of individuals detained in connection with the scam has risen to seven.
According to the police, the alleged scam involved 35 contracted agencies that colluded with government officials to embezzle funds earmarked for MGNREGA projects in the tribal-dominated Dahod district between 2021 and 2024. The fraudulent scheme reportedly involved the submission of bogus work completion certificates and falsified documentation to secure payments for projects that were never executed or were only partially completed.
Deputy Superintendent of Police and Investigation Officer Jagdishsinh Bhandari confirmed the arrests, stating, “Dahod Police have arrested Balvant Khabad and Darshan Patel in connection with the MGNREGA scam. We had previously apprehended five other individuals involved in the case.”
The investigation began after the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) conducted field visits and uncovered discrepancies in the execution of several rural development projects. During the inspection, officials discovered that payments were issued for road construction, check walls, and stone bunds in Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas, despite the absence of completed work. Payments were also made to contractors who were ineligible to participate in the tendering process or had not supplied the requisite materials.
The FIR, filed last month, accuses unidentified persons, including government employees, of cheating, forgery, and criminal breach of trust under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. Investigators are now scrutinizing the bank accounts and financial transactions of the accused to track the flow of embezzled funds.
Balvant Khabad’s arrest has brought significant political repercussions for his father, Bachubhai Khabad, who holds a prominent position in the state government. While the minister has not been directly implicated in the scam, opposition parties have seized the opportunity to demand accountability and transparency in the handling of MGNREGA funds.
The scam also raises broader concerns about the efficacy of monitoring and oversight mechanisms in large-scale government projects. Analysts argue that systemic corruption and lack of stringent checks have allowed fraudulent practices to flourish in rural development schemes across the country.
The MGNREGA scam in Dahod is the latest in a series of high-profile corruption cases involving public officials and contractors in Gujarat. Earlier this year, several bureaucrats and contractors were arrested for allegedly misappropriating funds allocated for COVID-19 relief efforts and infrastructure projects.
As the investigation progresses, the police are expected to interrogate other government officials and contractors who may have played a role in the ₹71 crore scam. The ongoing probe is likely to unearth more details about the modus operandi employed by the accused to divert funds meant for rural development initiatives.
The arrests have also intensified political scrutiny of the Gujarat government’s handling of public funds and exposed potential vulnerabilities in the state’s rural development programs. With multiple high-profile arrests and mounting public pressure, the investigation is expected to further unravel the extent of corruption and its impact on intended beneficiaries in rural areas.
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