Swami Chaitanyananda, the self-styled godman and former Chancellor of a Delhi-based institute, had allegedly sought sexual favours from his female students, in one instance asking a woman if she knew anyone who would become a “sex partner of a Dubai Sheikh”, Delhi Police said. The details were unearthed from the chats retrieved from Chaitanyananda's phone, police added. Arrested on Sunday, Chaitanyananda is accused of sexually harassing at least 17 women students. According to senior Delhi Police officers, chats recovered from Chaitanyananda's phone show a pattern of abuse that included repeatedly addressing students as “baby” and “sweetie baby daughter doll”. In one such chat, he purportedly asked a woman student, “You'll not sleep with me?” Chaitanyananda served as Chancellor of Vasant Kunj-based Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management-Research run by Sri Sri Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamsthanam Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham in Karnataka's Sringeri. The religious organisation had expelled him in August — before the allegations of women students became public — for misappropriation of funds. On Wednesday, a police team visited the institute again and conducted a fresh search of Chaitanyananda’s on-campus residence. “During the search, a sex toy and five pornographic CDs were found. Forged photos with PM Narendra Modi, former US president Barack Obama and a few others were also found,” an officer said. A senior police officer said Chaitanyananda has been evasive during questioning, refusing to answer questions directly. “He has to be questioned repeatedly because he refuses to answer direct questions. Chats recovered from his phone prove that he was harassing women students,” the officer said. Following his arrest from Agra, Chaitanyananda was sent to police custody for five days. He will be presented in court again on Thursday. “We are currently corroborating the statements of the victims with the available evidence. Some photographs of Chaitanyananda with women students have also been recovered from his phone,” the police officer added. Before he was arrested, police said, Chaitanyananda stayed in around 13-15 hotels booked by his aides in different cities. Police teams have visited Almora and Bageshwar in Uttarakhand besides Agra where Swami stayed while evading arrest, a police officer said.
