India Today's Postmortem investigates the arrest of Ashok Kharat, a powerful self-styled godman in Maharashtra accused of sexual exploitation and promoting superstition. Police recovered 58 obscene videos from his possession, allegedly showing him in explicit acts with different women. Kharat, a former merchant navy captain who reinvented himself as a spiritual figure claiming to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva, allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted women who approached him for help, then blackmailed them using videos and photographs. His influence extended to senior politicians, including Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, IAS and IPS officers, and even the chairperson of the Maharashtra Women's Commission, Rupali Chakankar, who was photographed washing his feet. Investigators have uncovered assets worth 150 to 200 crore rupees, including land in Nashik, Shirdi, and properties across Maharashtra. The programme also examines another case where a fake tantric, Kamruddin Mian, allegedly poisoned three people to death in Delhi after luring them with promises of multiplying their money through black magic.
In an exclusive interview with India Today TV, prominent economist and former IMF executive director Surjit Bhalla discussed India's economic performance and the decline in foreign direct investment since 2015.
Hamza Burhan, one of the masterminds of the 2019 Pulwama attack, was killed by unknown gunmen in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's (POK) Muzaffarabad.
A political controversy has erupted following the opposition's criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent foreign visit amidst the ongoing NEET examination paper leak crisis.
In this edition of Democratic Newsroom, India Today's editors discuss the rapid rise of the Cockroach Janata Party, which was formed in response to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant's remarks on youth.
