Court rejects Kalpana Kharat’s anticipatory bail application in cheating & illegal money lending case

Nashik: A Rahata additional sessions court on Wednesday rejected the anticipatory bail application of Kalpana Kharat, the wife of astrologer Ashok Kharat, who is currently in the custody of the Special Investigation Team in connection with multiple rape and black magic-related cases.Kalpana Kharat is among the five accused in a cheating and illegal money lending case registered at the Shirdi police station on March 31, following a complaint by a farmer from Rahata. The police said her whereabouts have been unknown since the case was registered.According to the prosecution, Kalpana, her husband Ashok Kharat, and three others allegedly duped the complainant of four acres of land at Nighoj, valued at around 10 crore, by camouflaging a loan transaction as a registered sale deed.Seeking anticipatory bail, Kalpana claimed she had no role in the alleged cheating or money lending, and said all transactions were carried out by her husband without her knowledge. The application was filed on April 4, after which the court sought responses from the investigating officer and the complainant.Opposing the plea, additional public prosecutor Babasaheb Pangavhane argued that there was prima facie evidence of Kalpana's involvement. He told the court that two cheques totalling 81 lakh issued from her bank account were handed over to the complainant.Investigating officer Niwant Jadhav further submitted that Kalpana had given power of attorney to co-accused Arvind Bavke, who represented her at the sub-registrar's office on August 22, 2023, to execute the sale deed. Investigators also found transactions amounting to 6.9 crore in her bank account. As she is not associated with any known business, the source of these funds requires detailed investigation, the prosecution said.Advocate Shubham Gondkar, appearing for the complainant, argued that the land transaction was deliberately misrepresented to an illiterate farmer as a mortgage, while a sale deed was fraudulently executed for the benefit of the accused. He contended that since the property stands in Kalpana's name, she cannot dissociate herself from the offence, making the case unfit for anticipatory bail.After the rejection of the plea, advocate Pravin Kolhe, representing Kalpana Kharat, said they would approach the high court challenging the order and seeking anticipatory bail.