Man claiming cancer cure booked for taking ₹2.5 lakh from family

PUNE The Pune rural police, on Thursday, booked Manohar Bhosale, a self-proclaimed “godman”, for duping a family of ₹ 2

PUNE The Pune rural police, on Thursday, booked Manohar Bhosale, a self-proclaimed “godman”, for duping a family of ₹ 2.5 lakh by promising a miracle cure for cancer.

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Two other people have also been booked in the case registered under the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013.

“For the past five years he has been claiming to have magical powers to cure cancer and started his ashrams in Baramati, Pune and Undargain, Karmala, Solapur. A lot of people used to go to him with a hope for finding cure to terminal health issues and financial problems. They were made to pay in the fractions of ₹5,000, ₹11,000 or ₹21,000,” read a statement from Maharashtra Andhashradha Nirmoolan Samiti (MNS), an organisation started by slain rationalist Dr Narendra Dabholkar. The statement was shared by Dr Dabholkar’s son Dr Hamid Dabholkar.

A complaint in the case was registered by Shashikant Kharat (23), whose father has throat cancer. The man who claims to have powers of some character called “Balumama”, told Kharat that his father needed to drink ashes with water and put on paste of some leaves that he recommended, according to the complainant. He also asked them for a fee of ₹2.5 lakh.

When none of his hacks worked, the family asked for the money back. That is when Bhosale threatened to kill Kharat’s family after which Kharat decided to lodge a complaint.