NEW DELHI 

Seventeen students of a private management institute in south Delhi’s Vasant Kunj have accused its director, Swami Chaitanyananda, of sexually harassing them by sending coercive messages, issuing threats of academic failure, and promising foreign trips.

An FIR has been registered against the self-styled godman, who is on the run for the past two months, the police said on Wednesday.

The matter came to light after a complaint was lodged on August 4 at the Vasant Kunj (North) police station by P.A. Murali, CEO of the Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham (Sringeri Math) in Karnataka, which administers the Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management under the All India Council for Technical Education.

Wardens booked

Based on the complaint, the police registered an FIR against Mr. Chaitanyananda and three women wardens of the institute, who are accused of helping him lure the students.

The police investigation revealed that the director primarily targeted students from the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category, believing that they would not retaliate. Of the 30 EWS students who gave their statements to the police, 17 alleged that they were sexually assaulted and harassed by the accused.

The police recovered text messages that read, “Come to my room… I will take you abroad for a trip, you won’t have to pay” and “If you don’t listen to me, I will ensure that you fail”.

“If they refused his advances, they would be threatened either by him or the wardens. Sometimes, the wardens even forced the students to delete the messages, leaving little proof,” an officer said.

After the FIR was lodged, the accused initially sought anticipatory bail but later withdrew the plea when the Delhi police presented “strong evidence” in court. “He was in London when the FIR was lodged. He later travelled to Mauritius and was recently traced to Agra,” the officer said, adding that  teams have been sent  to nab him.

The police said the accused has five criminal cases registered against him at the Vasant Kunj (North) police station, including two on charges of sexual harassment in 2009 and 2016.

A police officer said many “fake” diplomatic number plates were found in the boot of a luxury car registered in Mr. Chaitanyananda’s name. “The car has been impounded and his properties and bank accounts are being scrutinised. CCTV footage from the institute was tampered with and it has been sent for forensic analysis,” the officer said.