BJP leader and former union minister Chinamayanand who has been accused of rape, taken into police custody arrested. He will undergo medical test. He had earlier been hospitalised after he complained of "uneasiness".
New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former union minister Chinmayanand, accused of rape by a law student, has been arrested. He was arrested around 8:50am from his residence, his lawyer says.
Chinmayanand has been taken to a hospital by the police for medical tests, five days after the woman detailed what she said was a year of sexual assault and blackmail before a court.
Chinmayanand, 73, was hospitalized yesterday after he complained of "uneasiness". The politician, who runs several ashrams and educational institutions, wasn't charged with rape even a month after the woman filed a police complaint.
The police team probing rape accusations against Swami Chinmayanand on Thursday obtained records purportedly related to the appointment of the alleged victim's mother at a college run by the BJP leader's ashram.
The former Union minister returned home on Thursday after spending a day at a government hospital in Shahjahanpur, ignoring medical advice that he should shift to a better facility in state capital Lucknow.
The mother of the woman who has levelled rape allegations against Chinmayanand was apparently appointed as a teacher at a college run by his Mumukshu ashram in May, sources said.
The college principal has handed over the related documents to the special investigation team (SIT) probing the case, they said.
The woman, who is a postgraduate student at one of the ashram's colleges, has alleged that she was raped and “physically exploited” for a year by the former Union minister.
The case is being investigated by the SIT set up by Uttar Pradesh police on the directions of the Supreme Court.
Chinmayanand, who was admitted to the medical college here on Wednesday, was referred to King George's Medical University (KGMU) in Lucknow, hospital authorities said.
But he chose to return to his Divya Dham residence and get Ayurvedic treatment there, according to his counsel Om Singh.
The 72-year-old complained of diabetes, loose motions and high blood pressure when he was admitted at the government hospital.
"Seeing his advanced age and other complications, we referred him to the KGMU Hospital in Lucknow," a hospital spokesperson said.
He underwent several tests at the Shahjahanpur hospital where a team of four doctors monitored his condition, the spokesperson told PTI.
The student had earlier threatened self-immolation if the police do not arrest him.
Inspector General Naveen Arora, who heads the team, said a mobile phone and a pen drive given by the student have been sent for forensic examination.
The pen drive contains 43 video clips which the student says support her allegations.
Police had earlier registered a case of criminal intimidation and abduction against Chinmayanand on a complaint lodged by the woman's father. Later, the student also accused him of rape and "physical exploitation".
The SIT has also examined the principals of the two colleges where the girl studied in recent years.
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