Pune Engineer Loses Rs 14 Crore to Fake Godman Promising to Cure Daughter's Incurable Disease

An IT professional from Pune found himself bereft of his entire fortune, including his life savings and overseas property, after falling victim to an elaborate spiritual scam promising to heal his gravely ill daughter.

Over a seven-year period, the engineer surrendered approximately Rs 14 crore to a self-proclaimed godman and his female disciple, only to eventually discover the entire operation was a sophisticated con.

The perpetrators, 'Baba' Rajendra Khadke and his follower Vedika Pandharpurkar, manipulated the engineer, Deepak Dolas, into believing that Vedika's body housed the spirit of Shankar Maharaj, a spiritual leader who had passed away in 1947, and that this spiritual presence could cure his daughter's incurable congenital condition.

Deeply worried about his daughter's health, Dolas was convinced that only complete faith demonstrated through financial sacrifice would save her. The fraudsters insisted that donating all his assets to the Maharaj would result in his daughter's recovery.

Throughout the seven years, they continually promised Dolas he would receive 'darshan' (a spiritual vision) of Shankar Maharaj. In his desperation to find a cure, the engineer began transferring funds, initially from his bank accounts and subsequently by liquidating his property holdings, including his home and farmhouse in the United Kingdom.

As time passed, Dolas depleted his entire financial resources, with assets worth approximately Rs 14 crore being transferred directly into Vedika's account.

When his daughter's health showed no signs of improvement, Dolas finally confronted the pair and realized he had been systematically defrauded.

During their investigation, authorities discovered that Vedika had allegedly used a portion of the fraudulently obtained funds to purchase a luxury bungalow in Mahatma Society, an upscale neighborhood in Kothrud, Pune.

Police are currently expanding their investigation into the scheme, working to determine whether Rajendra and Vedika targeted additional victims with similar tactics.