'Did you use condoms?': Students reveal 10 disturbing accounts in Chaitanyananda harassment case

Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati

Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, also known as Dr Parthasarthy, is accused of sexually harassing more than 17 female students while heading the Shri Sharada Institute of Indian Management in Vasant Kunj, South Delhi.

Students claim that behind his public persona as a spiritual leader and academic, he used hidden cameras, coercion, and fear to abuse and intimidate them, Hindustan Times reported.

Here are some chilling revelations from the case: 

1. Hidden cameras in girls’ hostels: The FIR says Chaitanyananda allegedly installed CCTV cameras around the girls’ hostel — even near bathrooms — under the pretext of "security" and used the footage to question women students about their shower routines and personal relationships.
2. Intrusive questioning & sexual remarks: He is reported to have asked female students whether they had sexual relationships with boyfriends, and whether they used condoms. He also sent late-night WhatsApp messages like "Baby, I love you" and "I adore you."
3. Public humiliation & shaming: Students recalled being shamed in front of peers. A Haryana student was branded "characterless" for having a boyfriend, while another described seeing a girl flee his office in tears with her clothes torn. "Swami used to ask girls about their shower routine. There were CCTVs near our rooms and bathrooms... He once asked me if I had sex with my boyfriend and whether I used condoms," she was quoted by HT as saying. The complainant added that she was denied her degree and told to pay 715,000 to retrieve her original documents.
4. Ritualised harassment under the guise of festivals: On Holi, students were allegedly forced to stand in line, bow to Chaitanyananda and allow him to apply smear colour on their hair, parting, and cheek before anyone else.
5. Night summons & forced trips: Many students said Chaitanyananda summoned them late at night to his private quarters, and coerced them into taking domestic and foreign trips. One complainant said she narrowly escaped being taken to Mathura after repeated pressure.
6. Academic blackmail and financial extortion: Students resisting his advances allegedly faced manipulated attendance, grade penalties, withheld degrees, or being asked to pay money to retrieve their documents. One woman was told to pay Rs 7,15,000 to get back her documents.
7. Coercion by staff: The FIR names three female staff, including the associate dean, for allegedly pressuring students to comply with demands, delete evidence, or even change their names.
8. Illegal surveillance, phone confiscation & intimidation: Students say their phones were confiscated, they were isolated in hostels, tracked via surveillance, and threatened via his contacts.
9. Luxury cars and forged plates: A BMW, worth R1.5 crore, allegedly used to ferry students to Rishikesh under the pretext of "industrial visits" was seized during the investigation. A Volvo with a fake diplomatic plate ("39 UN 1") was also found in the institute basement.
10. Fraud, forgery and financial misuse: Police allege Swami Chaitanyananda forged books in his name, ran a printing press from the institute, sublet floors to private firms, and siphoned funds to buy luxury vehicles. He is also accused of tampering with DVRs to destroy CCTV evidence.