Sex toy, porn CDs and more: What Delhi police found in 'sleaze baba' Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati's ‘ashram’

Police in Delhi recovered more incriminating material including a sex toy and five porn CDs from the ‘ashram’ of Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati in the Indian capital. Chaitanyananda, real name Parthasarathy, originally from the east Indian state of Odisha, has been arrested on sexual harassment and exploitation of at least 17 female students. The 62-year-old man, being dubbed ‘sleaze baba’ in Indian media, was arrested on September 28 from a hotel in the northern Agra city after evading arrest for nearly two months.

What items were found in Delhi sleaze baba's room?

Indian media reports citing Delhi police said that after a 90-minute search on Wednesday (Oct 1) at his ashram/room on the campus of Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management-Research (SRISIIM) located in Vasant Kunj, Delhi, one sex toy and five CDs suspected to contain pornographic videos and obscene material were recovered. This was the second raid on the campus where he teaches, and is a director.

Also found in the raids were three forged or morphed photographs of him with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former US President Barack Obama, which were used to project false clout. Police also found on him several photos with air hostesses and text logs of several of his lewd chats with women.

Delhi sleaze baba had a pattern of crimes, probe ongoing

According to police, Chaitanyananda had a pattern of building a facade of power while engaging in sexual exploitation of his students. Police teams are also raiding his getaways in Uttarakhand for further corroboration of the evidence. The investigation is ongoing and more statements from his victims are likely.

According to complaints, Chaitanyananda exploited his female postgraduate students, many of them from economically weaker sections and on scholarships, at the institute. This included lewd and obscene text messages, pressurising students into sexual favours by threatening to withhold marks or scholarships. He is alleged to have misused his position to groom victims with gifts like jewellery while name-dropping influential figures like those in the Indian Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and the Chief Justice of India.

How police nabbed Chaitanyananda

Delhi Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) in August under penal sections for sexual harassment, stalking, and criminal intimidation following complaints from victims and an Air Force official.

Chaitanyananda went into hiding. He is reported to have disguised himself while staying in at least 15 low-profile hotels across Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand including in Bageshwar and Almora.

Police managed to track him via CCTV footage and mobile phone data. He was arrested in the early morning of September 28 in Agra, where he was living under the alias 'Partha Sarathi.'

A court remanded him to judicial custody for five days on September 29.

Shockingly obscene WhatsApp chats recovered from sleaze baba's phones

Police recovered explicit WhatsApp chats from his seized phone, which exposed his predatory behaviour.

In some of these messages, he addressed the students as "sweetie baby daughter doll" or "baby." Some messages appeared to show that he used to solicit girls for his "nice friends", and asked for a sex partner for a "Dubai Sheikh." The phones contained screenshots of women's profile pictures including air hostesses, according to police, who are also trying to forensically recover deleted chats.

According to police, Chaitanyananda had access to institute CCTV feeds from which he could monitor his victims.

Police froze assets worth ₹80 million linked to Chaitanyananda, even as it emerged that ₹5 million rupees were transferred post-FIR using allegedly forged documents. Police also seized a BMW car with a fake VIP number plate.

A close aide of Chaitanyananda, Hari Singh Kopkoti, was arrested for threatening a victim's father, while two female associates were held and confronted with the accused.

What the victims said about Delhi sleaze baba

At least 17 women, mostly his students, have recorded statements, with allegations ranging from sexual exploitation to molestation and unwanted sexual advances from Chaitanyananda. A prospective student also described a "troubling encounter" where she narrowly avoided admission to the institute after sensing red flags, including the baba's claim to her that a prior complainant “tried to seduce him.”