Two self-proclaimed godmen have been arrested by Navi Mumbai Police for allegedly duping a woman of Rs 1.9 lakh by promising to perform black magic rituals to solve her problems. According to officials, the accused approached the 27-year-old resident of Diwale village and convinced her that she was facing severe personal difficulties that required special spiritual interventions. They claimed to possess supernatural powers and assured her that elaborate rituals would bring relief. Trusting their claims, the woman agreed to undergo the procedures, unaware that she was being drawn into a carefully planned fraud.
The accused allegedly carried out the deception between September and December 2025, collecting large sums of money under the pretext of conducting ‘aghori’ rituals. Police said the duo extracted Rs 1.47 lakh in cash and an additional Rs 43,000 through online transactions. Deputy Commissioner of Police Amit Kale stated that the suspects pretended to perform mystical practices while systematically cheating the victim. After the woman filed a complaint on April 24, investigators tracked the accused to Ghoti in Nashik district and arrested them. The police identified them as Arjun Bharat Chavan, also known as Tantan Baba, and Sagar Shivaji Shinde, alias Ekalhari Baba.
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Authorities have registered a case against the duo under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for cheating and common intention, along with provisions of the Maharashtra law against black magic and inhuman practices. In a separate but related development, a Nashik court has remanded another self-styled godman, Ashok Kharat, to judicial custody until May 12 in connection with a seventh case of alleged sexual exploitation. He is accused of misleading women by claiming divine powers, sexually assaulting them, and threatening them into silence. The latest case involves a married woman who approached him for help, after which he allegedly drugged and assaulted her while her husband waited outside.