A self-proclaimed spiritual man is reportedly under scrutiny in Nashik over sexual assault allegations and the police have registered an FIR in connection with the case. This comes weeks after Ashok Kharat, another cleric in Nashik, was accused of rape, sexual assault, cheating and blackmail.
Police filed a complaint on Wednesday night against Maheshgiri alias Mahesh Dilip Kakdi (31) following allegations by a 28-year-old woman, PTI reported. While the alleged crimes took place in 2024, the woman gathered courage after being advised by activists of the anti-superstition organization Andashraddha Nirmulan Samiti, and filed a complaint, an official was quoted as saying. However, no arrests have been made in this case so far.
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The survivor, a security guard from Nashik who works in a private hospital, was taken to Godfather by her parents due to family problems and her mental health condition. Claiming to have divine powers, the accused allegedly told the family that the woman was possessed by a spirit and promised to “cure” her.
Exploitation under the pretext of rituals
The survivor is a security guard in Nashik. In her complaint, she said that her parents took her to Kakdi, known as ‘Bhundu Baba’ because she was facing some mental stress. Kakdi told them that she was affected by black magic and asked them to perform a certain ritual.
He then asked the woman to attend prayers every Thursday, but later began sending her obscene messages. However, things got worse in August 2024 when he asked her to come to a secluded place where he took her to a hostel.
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When the woman resisted, he showed her the rudraksha beads and threatened her, saying he had divine power and “she will not be able to resist anything” before forcing her to have sex with him, India Today reported. He allegedly took nude photos of her and threatened her whenever she confronted him. The report added that Kakdi deleted messages and other evidence related to the abuse.
After remaining silent for some time out of fear, the woman approached the anti-superstition organization Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti for help. A complaint was later filed with the Maharashtra Police, and an investigation is currently underway.
A case against the self-proclaimed Goodman
A case of rape and alleged crimes under the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013, was registered against Kakdi late on Wednesday night at Lasalgaon police station, and further investigations are underway, the official said.
Ashok Kharat, a self-proclaimed cleric who ran a temple in Sinar tehsil and has been visited by many Maharashtra politicians over the years, was arrested in a rape case last month.
