Ending the week-long manhunt, Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, the self-styled godman and former director of the Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management-Research, was arrested by Delhi Police at 3:30 am on Sunday from a hotel in Agra.
The arrest followed days of calculated evasion involving multiple hotel changes, false claims of government links, and a deliberate attempt to disappear into religious communities.
According to Delhi Police sources, the 62-year-old spiritual leader changed locations more than 15 times in an effort to avoid arrest. He strategically checked into hotels near prominent religious sites, knowing these areas attract less scrutiny and would allow him to blend in.
Sources also told India Today that Chaitanyananda and his aides falsely claimed connections with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to assert legitimacy and deter suspicion. Sources said that his associates made calls to people, implying Swamiji was linked to the PMO, which helped him secure cooperation from some hotel operators and aides while on the run.
Swami Chaitanyananda, also known as Parthasarathy, had been on the run after over 17 women students, most of them from the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) scholarship programme, accused him of sexual harassment, including sending obscene messages and unwanted physical contact. The students were enrolled in the institute he headed, and an FIR had been registered detailing several instances of abuse, including being summoned to his quarters at night.
