Marathi folk singer arrested for power theft

BHIWANDI: Marathi folk singer Santosh Chaudhari alias Dadus has been arrested along with a builder for allegedly pilfering electricity worth nearly Rs 4 lakh in Bhiwandi.
The builder has been identified as Sachin Thakkar. Both were produced before the Bhiwandi court on Tuesday, which remanded them to judicial custody till August 21.
Dadus is known as 'Marathitala Bappidda' for his penchant for gold like the singer Bappi Lahiri.
Narpoli police said the incident came to light when a vigilance team of Torrent Power learnt of the power theft by Dadus at his residence in Kamatghar area. A raid revealed the electricity connection had been taken directly from the main meter of Torrent's electricity pole. A Torrent official said, "On inquiring, we found builder Thakkar had directly given Dadus access to electricity and this theft has been going on for years."
Officials said before filing a case, Dadus had been served a notice to pay arrears, but when he refused to do so, both he and the builder were booked.
"Acting on a complaint from Torrent, we filed a case and arrested both of them," said S D Jadhav, senior police inspector.
Jadhav further said, "Following their arrest, both were produced in Bhiwandi court on Tuesday which remanded them to judicial custody till August 21."