Palghar/Pune, March 27 Police have registered a case against a self-proclaimed religious figure from Maharashtra's Palghar district for allegedly raping a 35-year-old woman from Pune, after he claimed to be the incarnation of Lord Shiva, officials said on Friday.
The woman filed a complaint against the 40-year-old accused, identified as Hrishikesh Vaidya, after the recent arrest of another self-proclaimed religious figure, Ashok Kharat, in Nashik, on charges of rape, they said.
Vaidya, in a social media post, denied the allegations against him and claimed that a false case had been registered against him.
Police said the woman first came into contact with the accused through Facebook in 2023.
"In December of that year, the accused visited Pune to meet her. He allegedly deceived her by claiming he was the 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 and attempted to sexually assault her again.
Senior Inspector Hiralal Jadhav of the Manikpur police station in Vasai said the woman decided to come forward after the Kharat case from Nashik gave her the courage to share her ordeal.
As the primary offence allegedly took place in Pune, the Manikpur police 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.
The complainant also alleged that the accused has lured and sexually exploited several other women using a similar modus operandi. Efforts are being made to apprehend the accused, the official added.
The Pune police have formed teams to trace the accused.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Nikhil Pingale said, "A case has been lodged at the Hadapsar police station against the self-proclaimed religious figure after a woman in her complaint alleged that the accused raped her...We have formed teams to nab him."
Accused Vaidya, however, refuted the charge against him on his social media account.
"A false case has been registered against me. Truth will come out soon. Satyameva Jayate," he wrote on Facebook.