Maharashtra: Journalist Arrested for Alleged Rs 5 Crore Extortion Attempt Against Minister Jaykumar Gore

Satara, 11th March 2025: The Satara police have arrested Tushar Kharat, a journalist associated with a YouTube channel, for allegedly demanding ₹5 crore to halt a negative news campaign against Maharashtra’s Rural Development Minister and BJP MLA Jaykumar Gore.

Kharat was taken into custody from Mumbai on Sunday night following a complaint filed by Gore. He was booked at the Dahiwadi police station and subsequently presented before the Vaduj court, which remanded him to three days of police custody.

A senior police official confirmed the arrest, stating, “The minister filed a complaint alleging that the journalist attempted to extort ₹5 crore in exchange for stopping a news report that portrayed him in a negative light. The journalist was reportedly using an old case against the minister to fuel the allegations.”

According to Gore, Kharat had revived a 2017 case in which a woman had accused the minister of sending inappropriate photos. However, Gore claimed that the Bombay High Court had already cleared him of any wrongdoing in the matter.

Gore further alleged that Kharat had made the extortion demand through an intermediary. “He asked for ₹5 crore, stating that ₹1 crore from the amount would be given to the woman who had filed the 2017 FIR at Satara City police station,” the minister claimed in his statement to the police.