In a bizarre tale of greed from Panhera Kalan village, Faridabad (Haryana), a son plotted to declare his living father dead in order to fraudulently claim government compensation. The son, Rajendra, organized a grand condolence meeting for his 79-year-old father, Lalchand alias Lula, complete with drummers, a feast, posters across the village, and even a tribute procession. The idea was to convince everyone that Lalchand had died in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh, making Rajendra eligible for ₹25 lakh compensation provided by the Uttar Pradesh government for such incidents.

Rajendra claimed his father left for Govardhan Parikrama on a bicycle nine months ago and then went on to Maha Kumbh, where he allegedly died during a stampede. When people questioned the absence of the body or evidence, he insisted he had lost all contact and after a fruitless search, took the villagers’ advice to hold a condolence ceremony.

The truth, however, was far from Rajendra’s story. Lalchand was very much alive and staying with his brother in Kosikala, Uttar Pradesh. It was only when a relative showed Lalchand the tribute videos circulating on social media that he discovered his own ‘death’. Shocked, Lalchand recorded a video for the village sarpanch and personally returned to his village, calling for a panchayat.

The revelations were more disturbing: Lalchand accused his son Rajendra of attempting to kill him, physically assaulting him, depriving him of food, and making him work as a servant. Rajendra had also seized his father’s land, building an ashram that he now calls home. Villagers confirmed that Rajendra’s ultimate plan was to pocket ₹25 lakh compensation by faking his father’s death in the name of the government scheme for stampede victims.

In the village panchayat held at the Shiv temple, the community decided to expel Rajendra and his family (banning them from village social activities, known locally as ‘hookah-paani band’). It was also resolved that a formal complaint and legal action would be initiated against him. Interestingly, Rajendra, once a hotel management graduate who ran an event company in Delhi, has been living as a self-styled ‘swami’ in the ashram built on his father’s grabbed land after 2010.

This case has shocked the local community, exposing the lengths to which some can go in the grip of greed—even declaring their own father dead and holding a fake condolence meeting in pursuit of corrupt gains. The matter is now headed for legal proceedings after the panchayat’s strong action.