Multi-scheme DBT scam unearthed in Rajasthan: PM-Kisan, pension, disaster relief targeted

An investigation by The Indian Express has revealed an extensive network allegedly diverting funds from government DBT (direct benefit transfer) schemes in Rajasthan, with police probing what officials described as a parallel 'cyber sarkar' involving agents, e-mitra operators and government functionaries.

The probe has so far led to 51 arrests and the identification of thousands of suspected illegal beneficiaries, officials involved in the investigation told The Indian Express.

Five individuals — Hazari Lal, 35; Dinesh Kumar, 38; Bhagwan Das, 30; Biram Lal, 25; and Ram Dayal, 25 — are believed to be among those roped in by intermediaries who allegedly used Aadhaar details to channel money from schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan), the Rajasthan Social Security Pension Scheme (RajSSP) and the Rajasthan Disaster Management Information System (DMIS), investigators told The Indian Express.

The testimonies

Hazari Lal, a resident of Rajpura in Sikar district, told the national daily that he was approached by a 15-year-old about two years ago seeking a photo of his Aadhaar card for a government scheme, promising half the proceeds. Eight days later, Lal received Rs 5,000. The man who allegedly handed over the money, Ram Babu, is now in police custody; Lal claimed he still does not know under which scheme the payment was made.

Dinesh Kumar, a mobile shop owner in Battukheri village in Jhalawar, recalled filling a form and sharing Aadhaar details “as everyone was doing so”. His wife later received money under PM-Kisan and he received Rs 32,000 in one instalment a few months ago, despite not owning land. Under PM-Kisan, Rs 6,000 is provided annually to eligible landholding farmer families in three equal instalments.

Ram Dayal, who runs a small clinic in Madanpura village, said he alerted authorities after Rs 33,000 was credited to his account without his knowledge.

“I approached the Collector and informed the cyber police station,” he told The Indian Express, adding that a photocopy shop worker was later arrested and the amount debited from his account.

Similarly, Bhagwan Das said a local e-mitra operator offered to split benefits from a labour scheme. “He said I would get the money, and that the two of us could share it equally. Since everyone around was giving him their Aadhaar number, I also did,” he told The Indian Express, adding that he received Rs 34,000.

Meanwhile, Biram Lal alleged that men convinced him and his sister to share Aadhaar details, after which pension and PM-Kisan payments began reaching their accounts despite alleged ineligibility. “I didn’t know it was illegal, the men fooled me,” he told The Indian Express.

Whistleblower tip-off and arrests

According to investigators who spoke to The Indian Express, the case first surfaced on 8 August 2025 after a whistleblower flagged suspicious transactions linked to a person named Ashiq Ali in Jhalawar’s Kamkheda area. SP Amit Kumar filed a complaint with the Cyber Police Station and cyber investigator Ravi Sen began examining multiple bank accounts.

The probe expanded rapidly after investigators detected coordinated transfers under different schemes on the same day. A crackdown dubbed “Operation Shutterdown”, launched in mid-October and later taken over by the Special Operations Group (SOG), resulted in 51 arrests, including government officials. Electronic devices, luxury vehicles and cash worth more than Rs 3 crore were seized, investigators told The Indian Express.

Police said over 11,000 bank accounts were flagged as suspicious and a chargesheet has been filed against 48 accused. Investigators estimated alleged misappropriation of at least Rs 14.81 crore under PM-Kisan, Rs 3.62 crore under DMIS, and a similar amount under the Rajasthan pension scheme in Jhalawar alone.

One of those arrested is Mohammad Laiq, described by investigators as the chief operator at PM-Kisan’s Rajasthan nodal office. A senior official told The Indian Express, “Sensitive data of around 99 lakh people has been found with the accused.”

PM-Kisan loopholes allegedly exploited

Investigators told The Indian Express that the accused first targeted PM-Kisan due to perceived gaps such as auto-approval of pending applications and earlier absence of strict family-level limits. Higher-level nodal officials allegedly approved bulk data collected by agents operating at the village level.

Ravi Sen, a cyber investigator with police, told The Indian Express, “Under it, all pending instalments from the date of registration of a beneficiary are transferred the same day as their account is linked to direct benefit transfer.” He added that dormant accounts could receive large lump sums, which were then divided among intermediaries.

Officials alleged that e-mitra and Common Service Centre operators identified inactive accounts and even registered applicants using land details from neighbouring states. Residents of Manohar Thana allegedly received PM-Kisan payments linked to land in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, investigators told The Indian Express.

Pension scheme manipulation

In the Rajasthan Social Security Pension Scheme, investigators alleged that ineligible individuals were registered by fabricating disability certificates using fake seals in some cases. An operator at the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) office in Jhalawar was arrested for allegedly facilitating approvals through official mobile credentials.

Investigators told The Indian Express that local officials helped bypass physical verification checks. In Aklera and Manohar Thana, 19,987 people were registered for disability pensions. “As per the 2011 Census, around 2.4% of the people in Rajasthan are disabled. However, the scamsters showed almost two-thirds of the population in certain areas as disabled,” an investigator told The Indian Express.

Police also alleged that gang members updated bank details in returned Pension Payment Orders (PPOs) to divert funds. Investigators told The Indian Express that at least 51,000 fraudulent PPOs have been traced.

DMIS portal breach

The state’s DMIS portal, which disburses crop loss compensation, was another alleged target. Investigators told The Indian Express that agents accessed or misused a Patwari’s Single Sign-On (SSO) identity to change beneficiary details. Bihari Lal Goyal, 32, has been named as a key accused in the DMIS fraud.

A verification exercise by the Jhalawar District Collector reportedly found 42.85% of beneficiary data invalid, while a report from Tonk’s Land Revenue Department flagged discrepancies exceeding 90%, investigators told The Indian Express.

Network structure and scale

Police described Ramavtar Saini, 28, as the alleged mastermind who coordinated field agents collecting personal data. Vikram Saini allegedly provided technical support by exploiting vulnerabilities in online systems and creating official IDs to approve bulk applications, investigators told The Indian Express.

Authorities alleged that Mohammad Laiq created nodal IDs for private individuals and approved bulk data routed through the network. Several others, including Vasudev Pareek, Ramesh Chand, Mohammad Shahid Khan and Bhagchand, have also been arrested.

SP Amit Kumar told The Indian Express, “People ask us about the estimate of the scam. I tell them I can’t say, because we have caught only one module; there are perhaps many similar ones in the state and the country.”

Investigators added that the fraud might have remained undetected without the whistleblower, as many recipients were unlikely to lodge complaints. Further investigation is underway.