BJP leader Chinmayanand, accused of raping law student, granted bail
What's the story
Former Union Minister and an ex-BJP member, Chinmayanand, who is accused of repeatedly raping a law student was on Monday granted bail by the Allahabad High Court.
Last year, the survivor accused Chinmayanand of exploiting his position and released a video seeking help from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
The student was also booked for extortion.
Backstory
An influential politician, Chinmayanand faces serious charges
Chinmayanand runs a college in Shahjahanpur where the student studied. In the video, she said other girls were also assaulted by him.
As the case garnered attention, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to probe it.
In November, the SIT told the court that it has evidence that proves charges against both the 72-year-old leader and the 23-year-old student.
Abuse
He tore her clothes, demanded massages
As per reports, Chinmayanand, who was once a BJP strongman, tore off the survivor's clothes when she resisted his sexual advances.
His aides used to bring the girl to his ashram where he demanded her to give massages.
After putting up with the abuse for months, the victim began gathering evidence against him by recording the crime using a camera fitted on her glasses.
Details
Victim was brought to a facility called "Divya Dham"
During one of the bail hearings in October, the probing team apprised the court that the victim was brought to "Divya Dham" frequently. A security guard at the ashram attested to this fact.
The "Divya Dham" was a spacious non-educational facility where Chinmayanand stayed.
Back then, DGC Anuj Singh said there was enough circumstantial evidence to support the victim's allegation.
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He was booked for stalking and criminal intimidation too
Chinmayanand was booked under Section 376C of the IPC that deals with abusing one's position to have "sexual intercourse not amounting to the offense of rape". He also faces charges under Section 354D (stalking), Section 342 (wrongful confinement), and Section 506 (criminal intimidation).
Arrest
Like Chinmayanand, the rape victim was arrested too
Along with the rape case, the SIT also probed the extortion allegations and arrested the victim.
Her dramatic arrest was strongly condemned by her father who said she was being framed and has no links with the three men who blackmailed Chinmayanand for Rs. 5 crore. However, SIT claimed otherwise.
The victim was granted bail on December 11, two months after her arrest.