47-year-old man, who claimed to have supernatural powers, has been arrested for allegedly raping a 36-year-old woman and her mother-in-law over a period of 12 years, and sexually abusing her 14-year-old daughter.
According to police, he had told the family of the 36-year-old woman, who was suffering from certain health issues, that she was a victim of black magic and that he had the power to cure her.
The woman’s family came to know of the rape after he started sexually abusing her teenaged daughter. The man allegedly demanded from the family, and received, four cars, two motorcycles and a flat in Satara over the years on the pretext of curing the woman’s illness.
An FIR has been registered at the Khadak police station by the woman against the accused, identified as Haidarali Rashid Shaikh, a resident of Guruwar Peth in Satara.
Shaikh, who is suspected to have duped several others in Pune and Satara, has been booked under sections 376-2n (repeated rape), 377 (unnatural sexual act) and 354 (molestation) under the Indian Penal Code, as well as relevant sections of Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013.
According to the police, Shaikh has also been booked under POCSO Act for sexually abusing the minor. He had been remanded in police custody for seven days. According to the complaint, Shaikh came in contact with the family in 2004.
The family started consulting him to seek solutions to their issues, said a police officer. The investigation also revealed that Shaikh clicked some photos of the woman and recorded a video, which he used to threaten and blackmail her. He has also been booked under sections of the Information Technology Act.
