New Delhi: More skeletons are tumbling out of the closet of Delhi’s self-styled godman Chaitanyananda Saraswati, who has been on the run since 17 students of a Vasant Kunj institute where he was chairman accused him of molestation.
Less than a week before the students of Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management-Research made the explosive allegations, Chaitanyananda had been booked in a multi-crore fraud case on the basis of a police complaint filed by the institute’s parent body, Sri Sri Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamsthanam Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri.
The Delhi Police had on 23 July lodged an FIR against Chaitanyananda, who the Peetham had accused of a fraudulent takeover of the institute and its assets worth more than Rs 300 crore, and diverting income from them for his personal use.
As chairman and MD, Chaitanyananda—formerly known as Swami Parthasarathy—was accused of misusing the power of attorney created by the Peetham and creating a parallel trust, mimicking the name of the institute initially started in 1995-96.
In its complaint, the Peetham also claimed that the godman had made fake Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) identity cards, forged a tax department order, as well as acquired passports in different names.
ThePrint has seen a copy of the FIR.
The godman has been accused by multiple students of molestation and sending them obscene text messages. The management of the institute had first received these complaints on 28 July, following which an FIR was registered 5 August.
More than two months since all the allegations surfaced, the Delhi Police are yet to arrest him. His anticipatory bail application remains pending before a city court.
Power of attorney(s) and a series of allegations
Based on the Peetham’s complaint, the Delhi Police registered a case under charges of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on 23 July at the Vasant Kunj North police station.
In the FIR, the Peetham narrated the sequence of events leading up to the alleged misappropriation of the institute’s assets and funds, as well as a fraudulent change in the ownership structure of the trust that runs the institute.
The Peetham submitted that it appointed Chaitanyananda as attorney of its Vasant Kunj institute through a power of attorney executed on 21 September 2008, a setup arranged for the “limited purpose” of effectively managing the affairs of the institute. The power of attorney was followed by another similar contract executed on 20 October the same year, in which he was appointed as the chairman and managing director of the Board of Governing Directors and a permanent member of the board.
Both of these powers of attorney were created by V. R. Gowrishankar, then the CEO of the Peetham, as alleged in the FIR, following declarations that the land in Vasant Kunj would be used for the institute’s purposes.
The Peetham claimed in the complaint that Chaitanyananda had maliciously and dishonestly registered a trust through a trust deed in May 2010 and appointed himself as the settlor. The trust was named ‘Sri Sharda Institute of Indian Management Research Foundation Trust’, through which the name of the institute was also changed.
This renaming of the institute, mimicking its earlier name, was devised to deceive both the people and the authorities, as the All India Council for Technical Education had given approval to the institute under its previous name, the complainant further alleged.
The land in Vasant Kunj was then transferred to the trust controlled by him, in complete violation of the power of attorney created by the Peetham, as well as the rules established by the Delhi Development Authority, considering that the Peetham remained the sole perpetual lessee of the DDA. Any transfer of immovable property had to be approved by the DDA, considering the land had been on a perpetual lease since 19 May 2004.
The Peetham alleged that through this fraudulently acquired control over the assets, Chaitanyananda further put several properties of the original owners on rent, and pocketed the money.
The complainant alleged that through the fraudulent trust, the Sharada Institute of Indian Management Research Foundation Trust, Chaitanyananda put immovable properties on rent, pocketing around Rs 40 lakh per month in rental income.
The series of forgeries did not stop here, though, as the parent body alleged in the complaint, adding that Chaitanyananda created one more trust deed in October last year, with changed names of both himself and the trust. He changed Parthasarathy to Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, while the trust was renamed the SRISIIM Research Foundation.
The complainant further alleged that, while all incomes and revenues generated by the assets were intended for the institution’s expenditure and development, the money was syphoned off by Chaitanyananda for his luxurious lifestyle, including the purchase of high-end cars. These included a BMW which the Delhi Police seized Thursday and a Volvo used with a forged ‘UN’ number plate.
The Peetham further alleged that Chaitanyananda and his accomplices also cheated the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the parent body of the Income Tax Department, by forging its order of March 2010 through which the Peetham was exempted from paying taxes. However, the accused allegedly forged the order and inserted “all constituent institutions” after the name of the parent body to claim tax exemption over incomes generated from all sources.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)