Lakhs of rupees swindled through fake MNREGA job cards with pics of Deepika Padukone and other celebrities in Madhya Pradesh

According to an NDTV report, Sonu Shantilal, Manoj Dubey and nearly a dozen other villagers have been paid for works which were never undertaken, show the job cards issued to them, district officials said, adding that lakhs of rupees have been claimed by means of fake job cards.

For example, Sonu Shantilal, who was paid for building a drain near his village, has no idea how such a card was made and he has not claimed or received money even for a single day's work, said the report.

Similarly, Manoj Dubey, who also found a card issued in his name, said he is clueless about it and has not claimed a single penny against the work mentioned in the card, added the report. However, a sum of Rs 30,000 has been withdrawn every month against the fake job card issued against his name, the report revealed.

Accusing the panchayat secretary and employment assistant for being involved in committing this fraud, Sonu Shantilal said they replaced his wife's picture with that of Deepika Padukone, stated the report.

A probe has been ordered to find how these cards were printed and the wages released against them, the CEO of the district panchayat said, adding that the guilty will be punished soon.

The NDTV report said that this is the same district panchayat - Jhirnia - which was lauded for paying out 100 per cent allotted wages for employment under the MNREGA scheme.