9 of 16 Victims Examined in Sexual Harassment Case Against Swami Chaitanyananda: Police Tells Delhi Court
Delhi court was informed that nine of the sixteen alleged victims had been examined, while the rest will record statements after returning from holidays; police submit forensic analysis underway
Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, accused of sexually harassing women students at a Delhi management institute, remains in judicial custody as police update the court on the ongoing investigation
A Delhi Court on Monday was informed that nine of the sixteen alleged victims in the sexual harassment case against self-styled godman Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati have been examined by investigators.
During the hearing of his bail plea, the investigating officer (IO) told Additional Sessions Judge Deepti Devesh of Patiala House Court that the phones of all victims and the accused have been sent for forensic analysis.
The IO further said the remaining victims were out of station due to the festival holidays and would return to campus by November 4, after which their statements would be recorded.
“The accused had a monopoly over the institution and took decisions himself,” the IO told the court, indicating the level of control Chaitanyananda allegedly exercised at the management institute.
After hearing the submissions, Judge Devesh directed the prosecution to file a detailed status report and posted the matter for further hearing on November 7.
Previously, on October 15, the Court had declined the plea for seizure memos but allowed Saraswati certain concessions in jail, including wearing his Sanyasi robe, access to medicines, spectacles, books, and food.
Saraswati, previously remanded on October 3, was in judicial custody till October 17. The police had informed the Court that they had added a fresh charge of threatening witnesses to give false evidence under Section 232 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Saraswati, 62, was produced before the Court upon completion of his five-day police custody. The Delhi Police had told the court that the new provision was invoked after one of the women complainants reported being threatened following the registration of the case.
Chaitanyananda, who was arrested from a hotel after evading police for days, underwent a medical examination at Safdarjung Hospital before being brought to court. According to DCP (South-West) Amit Goel, a special team had been tracking him across Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal before finally nabbing him in Agra.
Days before his arrest, a former student who first lodged an FIR against him in 2016 came forward with new disclosures. According to media reports, she alleged that her original complaint of molestation and harassment was ignored. She said that had authorities acted on her case nine years ago, many other women might not have suffered.
The complainant described systematic exploitation by Chaitanyananda, alleging that students’ laptops, phones, and educational documents were confiscated and withheld to exert control. She further accused him of manipulating students with false promises of foreign placements while subjecting them to unwanted advances.
The case against Chaitanyananda stems from an FIR lodged on September 23 at Vasant Kunj North Police Station, where multiple women students of the PGDM programme under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) scholarship accused him of sexual harassment and misconduct. The allegations led the Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri to revoke the Power of Attorney earlier granted to him in 2008.
Appearing for the accused, Advocate Manish Gandhi argued that the case was part of a “larger conspiracy” involving “very prominent individuals,” and assured that their names would soon be disclosed. The Court, while granting police custody, also allowed applications by the defence for daily access during interrogation.
The police are investigating charges of sexual harassment, molestation, forgery, and impersonation as a government functionary.
Chaitanyananda is accused of the following:
-Sexual harassment: sending obscene messages, making unwanted physical contact, and using abusive language against students, many admitted under the EWS quota.
-Financial fraud: siphoning funds from the Sringeri Math, allegedly diverting ₹20 crore through a parallel trust and misappropriating around ₹55 lakh.
-Forgery: obtaining a forged passport and falsifying documents to consolidate control over the institute.
In a related news, on September 26, a Delhi Court had dismissed the anticipatory bail application filed by Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati in connection with a criminal case involving allegations of fraud, forgery, criminal breach of trust, and misappropriation of funds belonging to the Sri Sri Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamsthanam Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri. Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Hardeep Kaur at Patiala House Court observed that the offences were serious in nature and required custodial interrogation to establish the full chain of alleged criminal acts. The bail application, filed under Section 482 BNSS (earlier Section 438 Cr.P.C.), was vigorously opposed by the investigating officer and the complainant.
Hearing Date: October 27, 2025
Bench: Additional Sessions Judge Deepti Devesh
[Inputs: PTI]