Man posing as priest caught by UP police looting Karnataka tourist for Rs 4000 against darshan; video viral

In the viral video, it can be seen that the local police were informed about the event and caught the fake priest and made him transfer Rs 4000 back to the devotee.

NewsBharati    03-Aug-2026 12:49:54 PM
Total Views |
On Monday, August 3, a man posing as a priest allegedly extorted Rs 4,000 from a devotee from Karnataka with the promise of facilitating darshan at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi district. A video of the incident went viral over the internet, with netizens criticizing the event and condemning the event.

In the viral video, it can be seen that the local police were informed about the event and caught the fake priest and made him transfer Rs 4000 back to the devotee. The police also schooled the accused and said that the whole world was getting free darshan, and the accused was charging outsiders Rs 4,000. “Sari duniya free mein darshan kar rahi hai, tum bahar ke aadami se Rs 4,000 le liye, " police said to the self-styled fake priest.
 
Kashi Vishwanath temple

Reports say that the Police intervened after the devotee complained after being charged for darshan by the self-styled priest. The video is notably making rounds on social media with netizens slamming the fake priest.

"Fake priest at Kashi Vishwanath charged a devotee ₹4000 for free darshan. Police made him return the money," one of the users said.
 


"A man posing as a priest extorted Rs 4000 from a devotee in the name of darshan at Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. The local police was alerted, and SHO Shivakant Mishra intervened. The priest returned the money to the devotee," another user said.


"It's a shameful act going on in Varanasi. A few people are taking the money for VIP Darshan at Vishwanathan Temple, Kashi," one of the users said.
 

 
Last year, scores of individuals posing as priests at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple were arrested for allegedly extorting money from devotees under the pretext of facilitating temple rituals. Similar incidents have been reported from other temple cities, such as Ujjain, where devotees keen for a darshan have been fleeced by crooks.
Kashi Vishwanath Temple Varanasi Uttar Pradesh Baba Vishwanath temple