Bhopal 'godman' charged with raping teen

BHOPAL : A self-styled 'godman' has been charged with raping a teenaged girl at his ashram in Bairagarh here, police said on Sunday. He would promise his female devotees miraculous cures and solutions to their problems, hypnotise and drug them before raping them, the girl has told police.

"A case of rape was registered against the godman, Lal Sai, at the Mahila police station. The victim complained that she was allegedly drugged and subsequently raped in the ashram in Bairagarh," said Ruchi Shrivastava, a police official.

Police said they had earlier received complaints about the godman molesting female followers on the pretext of helping them "establish direct contact with god".

"There were similar complaints from other women also. A few days ago, two women, through a missive, informed senior police officials about the alleged practices being carried out in the ashram of Lal Sai," a police official said.

The godman is absconding and police said they were on his lookout.