Another ‘godman’ in Nashik faces allegations of sexual exploitation, booked

Amid a probe into the Ashok Kharat case, the Nashik police in Maharashtra have registered an FIR against another self-proclaimed godman for alleged sexual exploitation of a 28-year-old woman.

While the alleged crimes took place in 2024, the woman mustered courage after activists from the anti-superstition Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (ANS) counselled her. The woman filed a complaint on Wednesday (April 22, 2026) against Maheshgiri alias Mahesh Dilip Kakde (31), an official said.