India, March 29 -- Styled as a spiritual preacher, Dattatreya Narayan, alias Dr Appasaheb Dharmadhikari, has a strong following among the people and across political parties. Leaders seen with him include chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, NCP MP Sunil Tatkare, NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule and many others. Dharamadhikari, seen as a spiritual leader, not a 'godman', is the son of spiritual leader Nanasaheb Dharmadhikari from Revdanda in Raigad district. He oversees the Shree Samarth Aadhyatmik Prasadik Seva Samitee and runs the Nanasaheb Dharmadhikari Pratishthan. The family's political standing can be gauged by the awards conferred on them by the Maharashtra government. Both father and son have been awarded the Maharashtra Bhushan - the state government's highest civilian award - the first by the Congress-NCP government in 2008 and the second by the Eknath Shinde-led Mahayuti government in 2023. Leaders of almost all political parties seek the Dharmadhikari family's blessings. Eknath Shinde calls himself and his family "followers" of Dharmadhikari. At the award ceremony, Shinde said: "The political establishment needs the support and inspiration of the spiritual establishment, and this is evident at this function." Controversy broke out after a stampede at the at the award ceremony in Navi Mumbai, where 14 followers died due to heat stroke and 50 people were injured. The government ordered a probe under then additional chief secretary, revenue department, Nitin Kareer. The report has not been made public....