Swami Chaitanyananda maybe arrested, but his fear lingers on campus

New Delhi, Sep 28 (PTI) The arrest of Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati in Agra on Sunday brought a wave of relief to the self-styled godman's victims and their friends. But beyond it lay the realisation that the struggle for justice has only just begun.

"The journey is only half done," a close friend of one of the victims, requesting anonymity, told PTI. "At the same time, we know that justice is not just about an arrest. It is about seeing the case through till the very end." The friend, a 33-year-old who was a super senior to the victim who filed a case against him in 2016, recalled that she had accused Saraswati of molesting and harassing her in his office.

When she resisted, he allegedly threatened and pressured her, even took away her phone. Fearing for her safety, she fled the hostel without her documents, but his associates tracked her down to her home.

Saraswati, also known as Swami Parthasarathy, was arrested in Agra on Sunday after being on the run since September 24 when allegations of mass sexual harassment against him hogged headlines.

The 62-year-old, a former head of a private institution in Delhi, is accused of sexually harassing at least 17 female students, most of them from economically weaker backgrounds.

"I feel the authorities must take strict action against him. He must be given a life sentence so that nobody can think of continuing these actions and preying on girls like this. Only then will others be deterred from committing such crimes," the friend said.

At the institute, students were forced to deposit their original certificates, which were returned only after the course was completed, a rule that left them feeling trapped, and cast a shadow on their career, the victim's friend said.

If anyone dared to resist or complain, they worried their certificates might never be returned, he said.

"The injuries and the pain that the man caused them physically and mentally cannot be revoked," the person said. "But what can happen is their monetary assets, the degrees, certificates or anything of that sort that he had taken from them, must be returned to the victims as soon as possible." According to the FIR, Saraswati allegedly summoned students to his quarters at night, sent explicit messages, and threatened them with academic failure if they resisted.

Investigators also found that he installed hidden cameras in the hostel, including outside bathrooms, to monitor female students.

"I have spoken with the victims, my friends, and everybody is relieved that he has been arrested, but they are not completely convinced yet. We cannot blame them because only half the chapter is done; the complete story is yet to end," the friend said.

The allegations extend beyond harassment.

Saraswati is accused of siphoning crores of rupees from the institute, withdrawing around Rs 55 lakh from a bank account after an FIR was filed, and even obtaining a forged passport under a different name. Police have since frozen accounts and deposits worth nearly Rs 8 crore.

"Justice in such cases is always a long road, and trust has to be rebuilt step by step," the friend said.

It was during this long struggle, he explained, that he decided to take a stand.

"I am extremely happy with the fact that he has been arrested. The reason I took a step to support the victims in whatever way I could was to somehow become a voice for them. The situation is very sensitive and I wanted somebody to stand on their side and speak for them," he said.

But fears remain, and the possibility that Saraswati could pull strings even while in jail is not lost on them.

"The accused has high-end relations, as we used to see in college, so we are afraid he might use those connections to get free. This fear is real, and it is something that we all share.

"He must be punished, he must be sent to jail and remain there for life. The pain he inflicted on the girls and the things we used to see in college were absolutely horrendous. This must be stopped," he said.

"What matters most now is consistency in the investigation. We want to see a system where influence or connections cannot come in the way of justice," he added. PTI SGV VN VN