Latest news with #BalwantKhabad
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Time of India
Dahod court grants bail to minister's sons in MNREGA scam
Vadodara: The Dahod chief judicial magistrate's court on Wednesday granted bail to Balwant Khabad and Kiran Khabad, sons of minister of state for agriculture and panchayat Bachu Khabad, in connection with the ongoing MNREGA scam. However, the court is expected to deliver the final verdict on Thursday after considering additional material presented by the investigating officer (IO). Balwant and Kiran, linked to two firms that supplied materials for MNREGA works without securing official contracts, were arrested on May 17 and May 19 respectively. Both were remanded to judicial custody before filing their bail applications last week. While the court granted bail on Wednesday, the IO requested more time to submit further evidence. The hearing will continue on Thursday before the court issues its final decision. The scam, unearthed in a probe by District Rural Development Authority (DRDA), involved illegible firms being given orders for the supply of materials for MNREGA works.
New Indian Express
19-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Dahod MGNREGA scam: Gujarat Minister's son Kiran Khabad held in pre-dawn swoop, hours after brother's arrest
AHMEDABAD: In a significant development in the Dahod MGNREGA scam investigation, police have arrested Kiran Khabad, the younger son of Gujarat Panchayat Raj Minister Bachu Khabad, further tightening the net around the influential Khabad family. This early morning arrest took place just hours after his elder brother, Balwant Khabad, was taken into custody on Saturday, signalling an intensifying crackdown. Kiran was apprehended on the Vadodara-Halol highway and swiftly brought to the police station. Speaking to the media, Dahod DySP Jagdish Bhandari stated firmly, 'Seven people have been arrested so far in connection with the MGNREGA scam. Some are in judicial custody, others on remand. Today, five more were arrested during a statewide operation.' He added, 'Among those arrested are Kiran Khabad, proprietor of the agency; APO Dilip Chauhan; former TDO R.K. Rathwa; and Parth Bariya, also linked to the agency. Bhavesh Rathod has also been detained. The investigation is intensifying.' The massive Rs 71 crore MGNREGA scam has rocked Gujarat's rural development machinery. With the arrest of Kiran Khabad son of the State Panchayat and Agriculture Minister the case has reached a new level. Kiran had been absconding, even as his elder brother Balwant Khabad, also a son of the minister, was arrested earlier on 17 May, directly linking both siblings to the high-profile fraud.
Time of India
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Gujarat minister's son held for ties to company that swindled Rs 71 crore MGNREGS funds
VADODARA: Police in Gujarat Saturday arrested the elder son of minister of state for panchayats Bachu Khabad in connection with an alleged Rs 71 crore scam tied to MGNREGS in Dahod district. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Balwant Khabad was taken into custody near Bathwada toll plaza after weeks of evading arrest. Police alleged that he was linked to Shri Raj Construction Co, which received payments for supplying materials for Nrega projects despite not qualifying through bidding. His younger brother Kiran Khabad, connected to Shri Raj Traders, remains at large. Both firms received funds without securing contracts, police added. The scam, unearthed in April by Dahod's district rural development authority (DRDA), involved 32 firms supplying materials in Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas. None had emerged as lowest bidders, a requirement under procurement rules. DRDA's inquiry revealed several projects were either never initiated or inflated, yet payments were cleared. Khabad, an OBC heavyweight of BJP and a four-term MLA, has not responded publicly to his son's arrest. Balwant and Kiran had filed anticipatory bail applications in Dahod court but later withdrew them. Balwant and co-accused Darshit Patel, a taluka development officer currently posted in Kheda, were produced in Dahod court and remanded in police custody for five days. Patel was earlier posted in Devgadh Baria, one of the talukas named in the investigation. Seven people have been arrested so far in the scam, which came to light following multiple representations to DRDA, including Congress legislators. Leader of opposition Amit Chavda, of Congress, demanded formation of an SIT, alleging: 'This scam could be much larger. Only an honest investigation can uncover full details.'
New Indian Express
17-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Rs 71 crore MGNREGA scam uncovered in Gujarat; minister's son arrested, another absconding
AHMEDABAD: A Rs 71-crore MGNREGA scam has rocked Gujarat's rural development system, with the arrested accused including Balwant Khabad, son of State Panchayat and Agriculture Minister Bachu Khabad. The scam, linked to massive irregularities in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act scheme, has surfaced in Dahod district's Dhanpur and Devgadh Baria talukas. Confirming the arrest, Dahod Dy SP Jagdish Bhandari told local media, 'Balwant Khabad and then Taluka Development Officer (TDO) Darshan Patel have been arrested in connection with the MGNREGA scam in Dhanpur and Devgadh Baria. Further investigation is underway.' Meanwhile, the minister's younger son, Kiran Khabad, is absconding. Police said further investigation into the multi-crore fraud is ongoing. At the centre of the scam is a well-organised network of fictitious infrastructure projects, roads, bunds, and other public works, that existed only on paper. Funds meant for tribal employment under MGNREGA were allegedly siphoned off through forged certificates and fake invoices, with the money reportedly diverted to agencies linked to the minister's sons. The scandal surfaced after B M Patel, Director of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), flagged major irregularities in project execution in Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas. An audit that followed uncovered the fraud, tracing it to Raj Construction and Raj Traders, firms run by Balwant and Kiran Khabad, both of whom had sought anticipatory bail amid mounting evidence. Between 2021 and 2025, villages like Kuva, Redhana, and Simamoi were falsely marked as beneficiaries of completed MGNREGA projects. On the ground, there was little to no work, only forged completion reports and a trail of diverted payments. As the investigation widened, authorities uncovered that 35 material suppliers, 28 from Devgadh Baria and seven from Dhanpur, were involved in routing fake claims with the help of complicit local officials.
