The Special Investigation Team which has been investigating the sexual assault case against Swami Chinmayanand has secured more evidence which might be useful to substantiate the charges against him. The SIT has recovered a pen drive and a laptop believed to contain video evidence of the incident from a local BJP leader, DPS Rathore, whom the SIT had been questioning for a marathon 12 hours.
Rathore, who is the chairman of the district cooperative bank was questioned on Sunday for over half a day regarding his suspected role in the extortion bid case lodged by Chinmayanand. It was revealed that the leader was present in Dausa, Rajasthan when the Shahjahanpur crime branch team found the 23-year-old student near Mehandipur Balaji Temple on August 30. The law student, who had accused Chinmayanand of sexual harassment and rape, had gone missing on August 24.
The student had reportedly mentioned in her complaint that one Ajit Singh had taken the pen drive from her, which contained the evidence to prove her claims of exploitation.
Currently, the SIT is working towards uncovering more details and finding out all those who are said to be involved in the case.
DPS Rathore who is the younger brother of BJP state vice-president JPS Rathore said that he was trying to help the authorities in the investigation process in every possible way. “I had gone to Dausa on the request of a few senior cops to provide support in the recovery of the missing woman.”
DPS Rathore said at that time he was accompanied by another BJP leader, Ajit Singh, who is the brother-in-law of Vikram, one of the accused in the extortion case.
Read: Extortion charges: Woman who had accused Swami Chinmayanand of rape sent to 14-day judicial custody
Previously, the SIT had dug the drain outside the college to search for evidence in the rape case. The purpose of digging the drains was to look for a spy camera fitted spectacle through which the law student had reportedly made a sting video of her sexual exploitation. The student had thrown off the spectacles in the drains.
DP Singh, a former MLA from Dadraul constituency has also been summoned by the SIT officials.
The Bharatiya Janta Party’ Uttar Pradesh unit had in September distanced itself from Swami Chinmayanand. The former BJP leader who was arrested by the SIT following charges of rape and physically exploitation on September 20 had been expelled from the party. “Chinmayanand isn’t a BJP member anymore,” confirmed UP BJP spokesperson Harish Chandra Srivastava.
After the controversy erupted, no BJP leader has come forward to extend any kind of support to Swami Chinmayanand, who has been in judicial custody since his arrest on September 20.
Chinmayanand was accused of rape by a law student in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur. She had accused him of raping and sexually exploiting her after secretly filming her private videos.
After a huge controversy, Swami Chinmayanand, who was arrested on September 20 from his Mumuksha Ashram in Shahjahanpur, had admitted to almost every allegation levelled against him and had said that he was ashamed of his deeds.
The law student and her associates have also been arrested later on extortion charges.
