Rishikesh Vaidya, a self proclaimed godman in Maharashtra Palghar district, has been accused of raping a 35 year old woman after declaring to be an incarnation of lord Shiva. The lady, who lives in Pune, is said to have come forward following the newly-arrested self-proclaimed godman, Ashok Kharat, a former officer in the Merchant Navy based in Nashik, and who gave her the heart to come forward. Police report that the first interaction between the woman and Vaidya occurred in 2023 via facebook and in December that year, he approached Pune under the guise of a religious meeting and told her that she was his Parvati and that he was promising her some sort of association with God.
After Ashok Kharat Viral MMS, Rishikesh Vaidya
The complainant claimed that Vaidya had taken her to a lodge at the Manjari locality of Pune where he had given her a numbing drug and raped her. In the attack, it was said that he captured photos of the woman, without her consent, which he used later to blackmail her. The woman further claimed that in May last year Vaidya had tried to assault her again sexually in a hotel in Vasai. According to the police, the accused has some social organisation in Palghar and has supposedly engaged in the same process to attract and abuse other women, and investigations are being conducted to find the other victims.
Who Is Rishikesh Vaidya?
Senior Inspector Hiralal Jadhav of the Manikpur police station said that because the main offence was committed in Pune, a Zero FIR had been registered on Wednesday after which it was handed over to the Hadapsar police station to investigate the case further. A Zero FIR enables the victims to file a first information report in any of the police stations in India, irrespective of the jurisdiction. The police are also trying their best to have Vaidya arrested and are also encouraging other possible victims to come out. The case shows the growing interest regarding the abuse of the claim to divinity by people to harass and exploit women, and the law enforcement officials have promised to take all measures against the suspect.
