New twist in Chinmayanand case, 'victim staying with extortionist'

New Delhi: Startling revelations in the Swami Chinmayanand sexual abuse case has given a new twist to the story, which has taken Uttar Pradesh by storm.

The Shahjahanpur girl who released a video on August 23, accusing former BJP Union Minister Swami Chinamayanand of sexual harassment, has been traced in New Delhi, along with the boy who reportedly demanded a ransom of Rs 5 crore from Chinamayanand.

A senior Uttar Pradesh Police officer confirmed with IANS that CCTV footage retrieved from a hotel in Dwarka establishes the presence of the victim with the boy who reportedly made an extortion call to Chinmayanand.

"We have recovered an Aadhaar card, submitted as address proof, from the Delhi hotel. The couple shifted to another hotel on August 25," said an official associated with the investigation, adding, "The boy also belongs to Shahjahanpur. Efforts are on to identify his place and family."

The police have also traced the location and the elopement route of the young couple from Shahjahanpur to Delhi through the records of their mobile phones.

Sources said that after August 24, the couple switched off their phones and probably started using new numbers. The police also said that the girl spoke to her family till August 24.

The victim, who alleged that Chinmayanand was sexually harassing her, was in touch with the local boy for the past several days. The records of her mobile phone established that the two were staying in the same premises in Delhi.

Earlier, Chinmayanand had said that he was being framed in a case of abduction and sexual harassment as part of a conspiracy.

Referring to the FIR lodged against him for the alleged abduction of a law student in SS College in Shahjahanpur, the BJP leader told a news channel: "This is a conspiracy against me and the girl in question is a part of it. There are four other boys who had earlier tried to blackmail me and extort money."

The former minister further said that attempts were being made to malign the image of the Yogi Adityanath government.

"Earlier Kuldeep Singh Sengar was implicated in a similar case and now I am being targeted," he said.

Expelled BJP MLA Sengar has been charged with rape and attempt to murder the rape victim and her lawyer by staging a road accident. Sengar is in Tihar Jail at present.

Chinmayanand has been accused of "harassment and destroying lives of several girls" by a student of Shahjahanpur's SS College, of which the BJP leader is a director.

The girl student made this statement in a video clip that was posted on social media last week. A day later, the girl went missing and her father lodged a complaint with the police.