PUNE: An IT engineer from Pune, desperate to cure his ailing daughters, was duped of ₹13.2 crore by a self-styled spiritual healer, her husband, and her guru. The case, now under the Maharashtra Black Magic Act.
A Promise of Healing, a Descent Into Deception
For over a decade, the 57-year-old IT engineer had lived between reason and faith. A technocrat who once worked in London, he returned to India in 2010, seeking a cure for his two daughters — one specially abled, the other struggling with a severe chronic condition.
In 2018, his search led him to Deepak Khadke, a self-proclaimed spiritual guru from Nashik. What began as an occasional visit to Khadke’s “darbar” soon turned into a full-fledged relationship of dependence and belief. Through Khadke, he met Vedika Pandharpurkar, a woman said to possess divine powers, and her husband, Kunal. Together, they promised what science could not — healing through spiritual energy. Police say that promise cost the engineer nearly everything he owned.
The ‘Dosh’ and the Doctrine of Fear
According to the complaint, Khadke convinced the engineer that a “dosh” — an ill effect tied to the family’s properties — was the source of his daughters’ suffering. He and his wife were told to sell all their assets and avoid storing money in bank accounts, which the accused claimed were “tainted” by negative energy.
Vedika, portrayed as spiritually gifted, instructed the couple to deposit their proceeds directly into her account. Over the next few years, the family sold their house in England, two flats in Pune, and a farm in Konkan — transferring the entire sum, totaling ₹13.2 crore, to Vedika.
“The accused told him not to pay even his specially abled daughter’s insurance premium,” police said in court. “They claimed the benefits would be cursed.”
By the time realization dawned, the engineer had exhausted all his savings, including his provident fund. He filed a complaint after realizing that the so-called “spiritual treatment” had yielded nothing
An Expanding Web of Exploitation
The Kothrud police registered a case under the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, along with Sections 316, 318, and 61 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for criminal breach of trust, cheating, and conspiracy.
The Pune Economic Offences Wing arrested Vedika Pandharpurkar (41), her husband Kunal (45), and their guru Deepak Khadke (65) from Nashik. The trio were remanded in police custody until November 14 as investigators seek to trace where the defrauded money was invested — and whether others were similarly deceived.
“They duped the victim under the pretext of curing his daughters,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (EOW) Vivek Masal. “We will probe whether there are more victims connected to their network.”
Faith, Fraud, and the Price of Desperation
The victim’s lawyer, Vijaysinh Thombare, says his client, now working privately as a consultant, “hardly has money left to treat his daughters.” Cases invoking the Black Magic Act — designed to protect citizens from exploitative spiritual practices — remain rare, but officials note a recent rise in similar scams that prey on fear, illness, and grief.
