Marriage fraud involving Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) is a serious concern, typically involving one party—often the NRI—entering into a marriage with deceptive intentions. This may include promises of long-term commitment, immigration benefits, or financial security, but the relationship is established with fraudulent motives.

Let’s take the case of Deepika Das, a 38-year-old single NRI doctor based in Canada, who fell victim to a similar scam in 2009. Hoping to find love, she turned to a matrimonial website—only to experience heartbreak and a financial loss of ₹8 lakh

Das began chatting with a man on the site who claimed to be a divorcee from Rajasthan and the owner of a palace in Jodhpur. The man, later identified as Abhinav Goyal, a conman based in South Delhi, appeared genuine at first. They connected in 2009, and at one point, Das even considered marrying him.

Goyal initially claimed he ran an antiques business and that his family lived in Greater Kailash. When Das visited India in December 2009, she stayed in a hotel with him. Goyal told her his family disapproved of his relationship with an NRI, which is why he didn’t take her to his home. He spoke about family tensions and said he wanted to start a new business, for which he needed financial assistance.

Trusting him, Das gave him ₹8 lakh. But soon after receiving the money, Goyal started ignoring her calls and eventually switched off his phone. Living abroad, Das found it too difficult to chase him and ultimately approached the police.

The investigation revealed that Goyal had a history of duping women living overseas, particularly those looking for Indian partners. He had reportedly scammed at least two other women—one American and one German—though unlike Das, they did not lodge complaints, allowing Goyal to remain under the radar.

Operating from a one-room apartment in Vasant Vihar, Goyal had created multiple fake profiles on matrimonial websites, consistently presenting himself as a divorcee. According to cyber sleuths in the Delhi Police, such fraudulent activity is rampant—nearly five out of ten profiles on matrimonial sites are believed to be fake.

“There is no way to check each and every profile, because anybody can put up a profile after paying a nominal fee. There is an urgent need for matrimonial sleuthing in India. To start with, the sites need to begin verifying the credentials of the people registered on their platforms,” said an officer from the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police.

Cybersecurity experts echo this concern and advise extreme caution when forming relationships online, especially through matrimonial platforms. “People tend to throw caution to the wind when it comes to online dating. It is best to first meet and then take the relationship forward,” said Sanjeev Deswal, chairman of Aaider Detection and Protection Pvt Ltd.

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A matrimonial site owner, speaking on condition of anonymity, admitted that verifying users is a major challenge. “Whenever anyone approaches us for information on our members, we tell them to hire private detectives. There are so many users, and it is not possible to verify each and every one. The number of complaints about women being duped online is not very big.”

There are legal provisions in place to punish individuals who commit such deceptive acts. Victims can seek legal remedies under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 420 (cheating) and Section 498A (cruelty by husband or his relatives), as well as other laws related to dowry and deception. Complaints can be lodged with the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian embassies abroad, and Women’s Rights Commissions. However, despite these available courses of justice, many women choose not to speak up, which unfortunately allows more women to be the victims. [Rh/Eth/VP]