Four people including an NCP leader and a Trimbakeshwar temple trustee arrested for darshan scam

Accused remanded in Police custody for 7 days

Nashik – The Police have arrested Purushottam Kadlag, the State Executive President of the youth wing of Sharad Pawar NCP and trustee of the temple committee, along with Gotiram Manaji Pehare and Abhishek Kadlag (nephew of Purushottam Kadlag) in connection with the financial scam at the Jyotirlinga Temple in Trimbakeshwar. A case has also been registered against the concerned. (Until the management of the temples is given to the devout Hindu devotees, such incidents will not stop. The Police should try to destroy the entire chain behind this scam. We expect that everyone should receive equal justice in the Court of God – Editor). The Court has remanded Purushottam Kadlag and Gotiram Pehare to 7 days of Police custody. The hearing was held before Justice A.G. Behere. Abhishek Kadlag is currently absconding.

There are strict rules for the entry of the VVIPs into the Trimbakeshwar Temple. The security guards do not allow anyone to enter directly. For this, permission or a telephone call from the trustees is required. It is mandatory to record the name of the devotee and on whose instructions the devotee was allowed entry. In this case, the devotees questioned how an outsider could take devotees directly into the temple.

🚨 Black Marketing of Darshan at Trimbakeshwar Temple! 🚨

Shocking revelations from Trimbakeshwar Temple – a leader from the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) and a Temple Trust trustee are among two arrested in a darshan black marketing case. Both have been remanded to police custody… pic.twitter.com/ChmWfR5PX7

— Sanatan Prabhat (@SanatanPrabhat) April 14, 2026

The amount is not important, but the participation of some other people needs to be investigated: Government Advocate

The government advocate argued that the temple is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas. The trustees register for darshan under fake names and cheat gullible relatives. This gang is run in the name of relatives. It is necessary to investigate if some other people are involved in this. Trimbakeshwar has a unique identity worldwide, and some rituals are performed exclusively at this temple. This has added to the already tarnished reputation of Nashik.

What is the matter?

On April 11th, a devotee from Panchavati, Ananta Mehendale, and his friends had gone to Trimbakeshwar Temple for darshan. The suspects lured them to have darshan in 10 minutes and extorted Rs 3,000 from them. Devotees are being asked to pay between Rs 3,000 and Rs 12,000 even though they have an official pass worth Rs 200. Devotees are being cheated even though there is no official ‘paid darshan’ facility of the temple trust. Ananta Mehendale filed a complaint in this case.

The Police conducted a ‘sting operation’

Nashik Rural Police Superintendent Balasaheb Patil said that Rs 200 are charged for VVIP darshan at Trimbakeshwar. Some brokers were working for immediate darshan. Action orders were received from the temple committee chairman and the judge. We conducted a ‘sting operation’ to find out how devotees are being robbed. Devotees who gave extra money were sent from the east door using the authority of the trust. 100 to 150 people were sent after paying an extra Rs 3,000. Those who misused the position of trustee will be questioned. All the evidence will be placed before the Court.

Reactions

Corruption continues in temple institutions precisely because Sharad Pawar has nurtured workers with atheistic ideologies! – Mr Tushar Bhosale, Head, BJP Spiritual Front.
The trustee selection process itself was driven by financial dealings, and Kadlag, along with two others, secured these positions by paying crores of rupees! – Lalita Shinde, Former Trustee, Trimbakeshwar Devasthan.