India, May 20 -- A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Tuesday allowed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to arrest self-styled godman Ashok Kharat in connection with an alleged Rs.70-crore money laundering and extortion racket linked to the multiple cases of sexual exploitation and fraud registered against him.

Special judge RB Rote granted the agency permission to arrest Kharat after he was produced before the court on a production warrant from Nashik Road Central Jail. The dubious godman is is judicial custody in connection with rape and cheating cases registered by the Nashik police.

The ED informed the court that Kharat's custodial interrogation was necessary to trace the proceeds of crime, identify beneficiari...