Rape accused Daati Maharaj grilled for seven hours, denies charges
What's the story
The Delhi Police grilled self-styled Godman Daati Maharaj for over seven hours on Tuesday evening in connection with rape charges levelled against him by a disciple.
The police fired about 200 questions at Daati but he denied raping the disciple.
On June 11, the Godman was booked for raping the victim in 2016. The victim said she stayed quiet because of Daati's intimidation.
The questioning
Out of 200 questions, Daati Maharaj answered some, dodged many
The questioning began at 3 PM wherein Daati Maharaj gave few answers and dodged many more. He has been asked to come for interrogation on Friday.
The police earlier issued a lookout notice against Daati to prevent him from leaving the country.
Some of his answers were not satisfactory and the police would match his claims with the sequence of events.
The case
Woman claims Daati raped her at his ashram
The victim alleged Daati Maharaj raped her repeatedly at Gurukul Ashwasan in Rajasthan's Bal Gram and threatened her to stay quiet.
She also named two of his associates in the police complaint.
Facing charges of rape, Daati claimed it was a ploy to malign him. "I am a worker of this nation. I am not an absconder," he said on Tuesday.
Quote
She's like my daughter, Daati Maharaj tells about rape victim
"I won't blame that girl because she was my daughter and will continue to be that. Even if I am hanged, I won't accuse her. If I have done anything wrong, then the legal authorities will look into that," he said.
Details
Earlier, DCW asked about delay in Daati Maharaj's arrest
Earlier Swati Maliwal led Delhi Commission of Women wrote to Deputy Commissioner of Police asking why Daati Maharaj wasn't arrested.
"He is giving interviews to the media from his ashram. This is a very serious matter," the letter said.
After the incident, yoga guru Ramdev called for death sentence against Godmen who violated limits of their work.