Pune, March 28 A self-proclaimed godman from Maharashtra's Palghar district, who allegedly raped a 35-year-old woman after claiming to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva, has been arrested in Pune, police said on Saturday.
The 40-year-old accused, Hrishikesh Vaidya, was apprehended from the Pimpri area on Friday, an official said.
According to the police, the woman had mustered the courage to file a complaint against Vaidya, based in Vasai, after the recent arrest of self-proclaimed godman Ashok Kharat in a rape case in Nashik.
However, Vaidya, in a social media post, has denied the allegations against him and claimed that a false case had been registered against him.
As the primary offense allegedly took place in Pune, the Manikpur police in Vasai registered a 'Zero FIR' on Wednesday before transferring the investigation to the Hadapsar police station in Pune for further investigation.
A zero FIR is a first information report that can be filed at any police station in India, regardless of where the crime occurred or which station has jurisdiction.
Police said that the woman first came in contact with the accused on Facebook in 2023.
"In December 2023, the accused visited Pune to meet her. He allegedly deceived her by claiming he was an incarnation of Mahadev (Lord Shiva) and that she was his 'Parvati," an official said, citing the FIR.
The complainant alleged that the man took her to a lodge in the Manjari area of Pune, where he administered a numbing substance before raping her. During the assault, the accused allegedly took photographs of the woman without her knowledge.
The woman told the police that the accused, who runs a social organization in Palghar district, used the photographs to blackmail her. In May last year, he allegedly called her to a hotel in Vasai in Palghar, where he again attempted to sexually assault her.
"Teams were formed to nab Vaidya. We received information about his whereabouts and apprehended him from the Pimpri area," a senior officer of the Pune police said.
