PUNE/NASHIK, April 26 -- A Mumbai-based financial consultant has accused arrested rape accused and self-styled godman Ashok Kharat of extorting and cheating him of more than Rs.8.76 crore over the past two years, allegedly by convincing him that costly religious rituals were necessary to prevent the deaths of his parents. Based on a complaint filed by Lalit Pophale, 48, a Worli resident and former trustee of Shivnik Sansthan, a Nashik-based trust led by Kharat, the Sarkarwada Police Station in Nashik has registered a fresh FIR against Kharat under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including those related to extortion, cheating and offences linked to superstition. This is the 17th FIR registered against Kharat in the past month alone. Of these, 14 cases have been filed in Nashik district and three in Ahilyanagar district. The allegations against him span a wide spectrum, ranging from sexual exploitation and land grabbing to financial fraud. The Maharashtra government has already constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe 11 cases in which women have accused Kharat of sexual exploitation. In parallel, the Enforcement Directorate is investigating alleged financial irregularities linked to him. In his complaint, Pophale alleged that in 2023 he transferred more than Rs.4.25 crore online to Kharat after being told that elaborate rituals were required to avert the "impending death" of his mother. He further claimed that in July 2024, Kharat used similar claims to extract another Rs.2.53 crore, this time stating that rituals were necessary to save Pophale's father. "To perform rituals to avert my father's death, Kharat and I travelled to Thiruvananthapuram, where I bore the expenses for our stay at a luxury hotel. He performed rituals on the seashore, which later appeared to be nothing but an attempt to deceive me," Pophale stated in his complaint. According to the FIR, Pophale also transferred more than Rs.1 crore directly to Kharat, along with another Rs.97 lakh to the account of Kharat's wife, Kalpana, following repeated demands for funds to continue the rituals....