Balvant Khabad, son of Gujarat Minister of State for Panchayat and Agriculture Bachubhai Khabad, has been arrested in connection with a massive ₹71 crore scam under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), a flagship rural employment scheme aimed at providing wage work to rural households.
The arrest, made over the weekend (May 17), follows an investigation into large-scale fraud in the tribal-dominated Dahod district, where payments were allegedly made to contractors for infrastructure projects—such as roads and check walls—that were never completed, or in some cases, never started.
Balvant Khabad reportedly owns one of the 35 private agencies accused of colluding with government officials to siphon off public funds between 2021 and 2024, according to police officials. These agencies allegedly submitted bogus work completion certificates and forged documents to fraudulently claim payments under MGNREGA.
Police also arrested Darshan Patel, the former Taluka Development Officer (TDO) in Dahod, bringing the total number of arrests in the case to seven. “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 DSP and Investigating Officer Jagdishsinh Bhandari.
The FIR, initially lodged last month, includes charges of cheating, forgery, and breach of trust against unnamed individuals, including government employees. It was filed after the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) unearthed discrepancies during routine field inspections. Officials found that payments had been made for projects not executed, particularly in Devgadhbariya and Dhanpur talukas.
The DRDA’s findings indicate a systemic pattern of fraud: funds were released to agencies that either didn’t qualify or hadn’t participated in the tendering process, while physical verification showed no actual work on the ground.
Bachubhai Khabad, a senior BJP leader and four-time MLA representing Devgadhbariya, was previously a minister in the Anandiben Patel-led state government. The development has raised serious questions over political accountability and governance, especially given the direct involvement of a minister’s family member.
Authorities have said the probe is ongoing, and further arrests and revelations are expected in the coming days.
