Pune, March 25: A self-styled godman in Pune allegedly duped a farmer of Rs 12 lakh by promising to find why his cows were not producing milk. Reports inform that the self-proclaimed godman was booked late on Wednesday night by Pune rural police for the crime. According to a report by Hindustan Times, the godman also promised of providing a solution to the farmer's burst drip irrigation pipelines. The report claims that several other people have raised concerns with similar complaints against the same person.  Nithyananda, Rape-Accused Self-Styled Godman, Being Probed By French Government Over Alleged $400,000 Fraud.

The godman duped the farmer by saying that someone had performed black magic in order to damage his farm. The farmer believed him and agreed to get a puja done, following which he got duped. The godman has been identified as Uttam Lakshman Bhagwat who duped a farmer named Dadasaheb Tamhane (45) from Aasu village in Phaltan region of Satara district. As the incident came to light, Police invoked the Maharashtra anti-black magic act against the godman at Walchandnagar police station.

The farmer alleged that the godman use to threaten him and kept telling them that a family member will suffer physical harm if they do not pay him. Describing his ordeal, the man said that the accused allegedly told the victim that they should not reveal anything about the puja rituals to anyone if he wanted it to be successful.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 25, 2021 06:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).