Elusive for 2 months, Swami Chaitanyanand held from Agra hotel
The self proclaimed spiritual leader Swami Chaitanyanand Saraswati was accused for allegedly sexually harassing 17 students at Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management
Swami Chaitanyanand Saraswati, 62, former chairman of Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management Research in Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, was arrested from a hotel in Agra in the early hours of Sunday, confirmed Agra commissioner of police (CP), Deepak Kumar. He had been on the run since August 5, when a FIR was lodged against him on charges of molestation, cheating, and forgery.
Agra CP said the operation was led by Delhi Police, with local police assisting in tracing the accused. Chaitanyanand was taken into custody from a hotel under Tajganj police station around 3 am and later moved to Delhi for further proceedings.
According to a Delhi police official, Chaitanyanand faces allegations of sexually harassing 17 female students, sending obscene messages, and threatening them with poor grades if they resisted his advances. Several victims said he would summon them to his room at night and behave inappropriately.
He said the police investigation revealed CCTV cameras had been installed inside hostel rooms under the pretext of security. Students on Economically Weaker Section (EWS) scholarships, whose parents were barred from entering the campus, were allegedly targeted.
Police also said three female wardens assisted Chaitanyanand by deleting incriminating messages from students’ phones. Two FIRs have been registered against him, one for forgery and another for sexual harassment. He will be produced in court, where police are likely to seek custody remand for further interrogation.
