New Delhi: The self-styled godman of a Delhi ashram, Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, who is facing molestation charges, besides fraud charges, has his roots linked to Odisha. Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, earlier known as Swami Parthasarathy, is originally from Odisha, reported Zee News. According to a News 18 TV report, an investigation team is being sent to Odisha to track the godman. His last location was reportedly traced to Agra.
As the molestation scandal has taken a dramatic turn with an Indian Air Force (IAF) letter surfacing to bolster the case against him, even as Delhi Police scramble to arrest the absconding guru.
More than 15 women, including students, have accused the former director of the Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management-Research in Gurgaon and Vasant Kunj of molestation, intimidation, and blackmail, charges that have shaken the credibility of an institution once held in high regard.
According to investigators, the IAF headquarters wrote to the institute on August 1 detailing serious complaints of abuse faced by women students. The letter pointed to late-night lewd WhatsApp messages, coercive calls to visit his room, threats to fail students who resisted, and inducements such as “free foreign trips” to pressure victims into submission. Sources said the allegations suggest a “pattern of predatory behavior” backed by the power he wielded as head of the institute.
Delhi Police, which has already issued a Look-Out Circular to prevent the swami from fleeing abroad, confirmed that statements from at least 32 women have been recorded, with 17 narrating harrowing accounts of harassment. Some testimonies also allege that a few faculty members and administrators either turned a blind eye or actively pressured victims into silence, raising troubling questions about systemic complicity.
The Sri Sringeri Math, which oversees the institute, has distanced itself from Chaitanyananda, removing him from his post, revoking his power of attorney, and appointing a new governing council. The institute has claimed to have submitted more than 300 pages of evidence, including messages and documents, to aid the probe.
Chaitanyananda Saraswati has a history of legal issues, with molestation and fraud complaints filed in 2006, 2009, and 2016, reported the India Today. Authorities continue to pursue him across multiple states, including Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand.
For the victims, the ordeal was more than just harassment—it was the collapse of trust in an academic and spiritual space. Police officials said the allegations extend to physical molestation, unwanted advances, and a toxic environment of fear where academic performance was manipulated as a tool of coercion. “The evidence is serious and the investigation is moving swiftly,” one officer said.
While the accused was not found, the police had seized a luxury car with a fake United Nations registration plate.
The complaint was initially registered by P A Murli, the administrator of Sri Sringeri Math. As per the complaint, it was alleged that a PGDM student from the institute was sexually harassed.
