PALGHAR: A self-styled godman from Maharashtra’s Palghar district has been booked for allegedly raping a 35-year-old woman after claiming to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva, an official said on Friday.The woman came forward to file a complaint against the 40-year-old accused following the recent arrest of former Merchant Navy officer and self-styled godman Ashok Kharat in Nashik, the official added.Police said the woman, a resident of Pune, first came into contact with the accused through Facebook in 2023.“In December of that year, the accused visited Pune to meet the woman. He allegedly deceived her by claiming he was an incarnation of Mahadev (Lord Shiva) and that she was his ‘Parvati’,” said the official, citing the FIR.The complainant alleged that the accused took her to a lodge in Pune’s Manjari area, where he administered a numbing substance before raping her. During the assault, he also allegedly took photographs of her without her knowledge.She told police that the accused, who runs a social organisation in Palghar district, later used these photographs to blackmail her. In May last year, he allegedly called her to a hotel in Vasai and attempted to sexually assault her again.Senior Inspector Hiralal Jadhav of Manikpur police station said the woman decided to come forward after the “Captain” Kharat case in Nashik gave her the courage to share her ordeal.Since the primary offence allegedly took place in Pune, Manikpur police registered a Zero FIR on Wednesday and subsequently transferred the case to Hadapsar police station in Pune for further investigation, he said.A Zero FIR is a first information report that can be filed at any police station in India, irrespective of where the crime occurred or which station has jurisdiction.The complainant has further alleged that the accused used a similar modus operandi to lure and sexually exploit several other women. Efforts are underway to apprehend him, the official added.(With agency inputs)
