Nashik: Woman Duped Of ₹77,000 In Occult Ritual Promising Marriage To Boyfriend

Nashik: A self-proclaimed occultist has been apprehended for allegedly swindling a woman out of ₹77,000 by promising to arrange her boyfriend's marriage. Vishal Ramdas Khadangale, the suspect, allegedly extorted the money from the woman while conducting an occult ceremony at Nashik's Amardham crematorium in the dead of night. The victim, who had been in a four-year relationship with Jitu Pawar, had traveled from Gujarat to Nashik with her boyfriend.

After Pawar declined to marry her, she sought help from the self-styled occult practitioner, who assured her he could make the marriage happen. During the ritual, the accused allegedly threw ashes from a cremated body, lemons, and puffed rice at the woman. He then demanded payment of ₹77,000 for performing the ceremony. When the woman refused to pay, she claims she was threatened and physically assaulted by the occultist and his associate.

The woman then contacted the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS) and filed a complaint at Bhadrakali Police Station, leading to the registration of a case under the anti-superstition and black-magic law. Police have arrested both Khadangale and his associate Jitu Pawar, and several officials, including the State Principal Secretary of MANS and several district-level members, have pledged to ensure legal action is taken against the accused and justice is served to the victim.