Chaitanyananda Saraswati's fraud: Forged UN visiting cards, fake PMO connection
What's the story
Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, a self-proclaimed godman, was arrested for sexually harassing 17 women at an ashram in Delhi. He was arrested in Agra after being on the run for 50 days. The police investigation revealed a series of fraudulent activities by him. These included forging visiting cards and passports and faking connections with the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
Fraudulent documents
Fake visiting cards and passports
The police found two fake visiting cards from Chaitanyananda, one as a Permanent Ambassador of the United Nations and another as an Indian Special Envoy of BRICS. He also had two passports under different names with contradictory parental details and places of birth. The investigation further revealed that he had two bank accounts with the Union Bank of India under different names.
Property fraud
Fraud of ₹40 crore
In 1998, the Delhi Lieutenant Governor allotted a plot in Vasant Kunj to Sharada Peeth for building a math. Chaitanyananda was appointed as the senior official of this math. However, in 2008, he changed its name without permission to Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management. He even rented out a property without permission. This led to a fraud of ₹40 crore.
Arrest details
Chaitanyananda evaded arrest for 2 months
The arrest took place at Hotel First in Taj Ganj around 3:30am. He had earlier evaded molestation charges in 2009 and 2016 by using his influence. The complaints against him by students state that some wardens working at the management institute had introduced them to the Baba, who used to call them to his room. He allegedly lured them with free foreign trips and secretly installed cameras in their hostel rooms.
Academic fraud
Bogus claims of degrees and books
Chaitanyananda claimed to be a highly qualified management guru with an MBA and a PhD from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He also claimed post-doctoral degrees and honorary DLitt degrees from various universities. His books featured forewords by Steve Jobs and appreciation messages from Ban Ki-Moon. However, NDTV reported that the Delhi police suspect these claims are fake.