In a bizarre incident, a 19-year-old tantric claimed he could bring back the dead and tried to fool villagers by using his fake supernatural powers on a jawan with the home guards department, who had fainted for a few hours. Like the climax of a failed filmy plot, the tantric was arrested by the police and booked under the anti-superstition law.

On October 26, home guard Prashant Mesare, 28, fainted in a temple in  Akola’s Vivra village. His brother Gopal rushed him to a hospital, and shared the news  with the local tantric, Deepak alias Sagar Borale, 19. With his convincing powers, Borale got Mesare’s family to shift him back to the village temple from the hospital. He then pronounced Mesare dead, prohibited anyone from touching the body, and claimed he would bring Mesare back to life, as he “could feel” the soul refusing to leave.