Friday, December 6, was supposed to be the happiest day in the life of Deepak, a resident of Jalandhar, Punjab. The 24-year-old was set to tie the knot with the love of his life¡ªor so he thought¡ªuntil the baraat reached the wedding venue, which did not exist.
Deepak, who used to work as a labourer in Dubai, had recently returned to his hometown to marry Manpreet Kaur, a resident of Moga, whom he befriended on Instagram. According to Deepak, he "met" the woman through Instagram about three years ago, and soon, their friendship developed into a "relationship."
Despite never having met Manpreet in person, Deepak continued his relationship with her, and the two, with the consent of their parents, agreed to get married on December 6. Manpreet introduced herself as the daughter of Jagtar Singh, a resident of Kot Mohalla, Moga, and claimed she was a lawyer.
According to Deepak, he even helped Manpreet with the wedding expenses, transferring over ?50,000 to her account recently.
On Friday, Deepak and his family, along with around 150 wedding party members, travelled to Moga for the big day. Throughout the day, Deepak was regularly in touch with Manpreet, who also "helped" coordinate their accommodation in Moga.
However, on Friday evening, Manpreet's phone became unreachable. Deepak, dressed as the groom, was in for the shock of his life when he reached the supposed wedding venue. He had been told that Rose Garden Palace was the venue, but when the baraat arrived at the given address, they were shocked to learn it didn¡¯t exist.
Deepak tried to contact Manpreet, but to no avail, and he soon realised he had been duped. His family has filed a police complaint, but Deepak said he is now unsure if the photos he has of Manpreet are real.
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