Kalpana Kharat, the wife of astrologer Ashok Kharat, has filed an application for anticipatory bail in connection with a cheating and black magic case registered against the couple at the Sinnar police station on April 8.
Her plea for interim bail was rejected by the court of Additional Sessions Judge K.G. Joshi on Wednesday. The court has scheduled the hearing for the anticipatory bail application for May 15.
Details of the Case
Kalpana Kharat, her husband Ashok Kharat, and two to three unidentified individuals are accused under Sections 420 (cheating) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with relevant sections of the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013.
Land Fraud Allegations
The Kharats and their accomplices are accused of usurping 16.5 acres of land in Mirgaon, near Shirdi, belonging to a grocer. According to the complaint, the grocer had visited Kharat's Nashik office to discuss the sale of the land, which he had purchased for 15 lakh in 1997.
In 2003-04, the victim alleged that Kharat manipulated him by claiming the land carried a "bad omen," but suggested he could purchase it to construct a temple instead. Kharat then allegedly took the grocer and his family members—who jointly held the land—to the Deputy Registrar's office in Sinnar. There, he obtained their signatures on various documents, effectively transferring the entire 16.5-acre property for a recorded sum of 3.47 lakh.
The complainant stated that even this significantly lower amount was never paid. Despite the loss, the victim did not approach the authorities for over two decades due to alleged threats from Kharat. The astrologer reportedly claimed to possess divine powers and threatened to use them to destroy the complainant's family. The sale deed was allegedly made fraudulently in the names of both Ashok and Kalpana Kharat.
