Police also arrested the then Taluka Development Officer Darshan Patel in Dahod district, taking the number of persons held so far to seven
NEW DELHI – The son of a minister in the BJP government in Gujarat has been taken into custody for his alleged involvement in a Rs 71 crore MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005) scam.
MGNREGA is a social welfare measure that guarantees wage employment for rural households who volunteer for unskilled manual work.
Balvant Khabad, the son of Gujarat Minister of State for Panchayat and Agriculture Bachubhai Khabad, was arrested at the weekend (May 17) for his involvement in the scam where some contracted agencies received payments from the government without finishing work or supplying goods, media reports reaching here quoted police officials as saying.
Bachubhai Khabad represents Devgadhbariya constituency in the state assembly, having been elected an MLA four times. He was also a minister in the Anandiben Patel government.
Police also arrested the then Taluka Development Officer (TDO) Darshan Patel in Dahod district, taking the number of persons held so far to seven, an officer said.
The alleged scam involved owners of 35 agencies in connivance with government officials siphoning off Rs 71 crore between 2021 and 2024 by producing bogus work completion certificates and other evidence to get the payment under the MGNREGA scheme.
A police officer said Balvant Khabad owns one of these agencies, accused of committing fraud in MGNREGA works in areas under Devgadhbariya and Dhanpur talukas of tribal-dominated Dahod district.
“Dahod Police have arrested Bachubhai Khabad’s son Balvant Khabad and the then TDO Darshan Patel in connection with the MGNREGA scam in the district. We had arrested five persons earlier,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police and Investigation Officer Jagdishsinh Bhandari.
Police last month registered an FIR on charges of cheating, forgery, and breach of trust against unidentified persons, including government employees, after the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) unearthed the scam.
During field visits, RDA officials found that payments were made to contractors for those roads not laid but shown as completed on paper to receive the payment, the FIR said.
The assigned work includes constructing roads, check walls, and stone bunds in two talukas of Dahod between January 2021 and December 2024.
Police said payments were also made to agencies ineligible for supplying material or those who had not participated in the tendering process.
Further investigation is underway. — With inputs from agencies
