In a significant development, the Patiala House Court has extended the judicial custody of Chaitanyanand Saraswati for an additional 14 days. The self-styled godman, arrested in connection with an alleged molestation case involving 17 girls, will remain in custody until November 14. His bail plea is scheduled to be heard on November 7.
Saraswati was arrested on September 27 in Agra and subsequently brought to Delhi. The FIR against him was lodged at the Vasant Kunj North Police Station. During his appearance in court, Judicial Magistrate First Class Animesh Kumar ordered the extension of his judicial custody.
The Delhi Police had sought more time to file a status report on Saraswati’s bail application, citing that many of the victims were out of town due to a session break and could not be examined. Investigation Officer ACP Ved Prakash informed the court that the victims’ statements were crucial for the investigation and that he needed more time to complete the examination.
However, the court expressed dissatisfaction with the delay, stating that the ongoing investigation was not a sufficient ground for adjournment. Previously, on October 13, the court had requested a fresh reply from the police regarding the bail plea. The police had reported that statements from 16 victims had been recorded, and evidence, including mobile phones and screenshots of alleged obscene content, was being collected.
Saraswati had moved an application seeking bail, but the court had previously remanded him to 14 days’ judicial custody on October 3, a period that was later extended. The Delhi Police had interrogated him for five days on custodial remand. The court had also rejected his earlier plea for anticipatory bail in a separate financial irregularities case.