Maharashtra: A 28-year-old self-styled godman was detained on Thursday in Maharashtra's Thane district for allegedly defrauding a woman of Rs 32 lakh to "drive away evil spirits." Baban Baburao Patil was detained by the police last week in the Jalgaon district of north Maharashtra, he added.

According to a police official from Dombivili's Ramnagar police station, the accused has been charged under sections 420 (cheating) and 406 (criminal breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code, as well as the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013. Since December 2019, the complainant, a Kalwa resident, has claimed that the accused has promised to drive away evil spirits from her family and has demanded money from her on several occasions, he said.

During this time, Patil took Rs 31.60 lakh and several valuable items from her and did nothing to help her, according to the official.

According to him, the accused was brought before a local court who remanded him in police custody for two days.

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