Daati Maharaj's Pali ashram raided by team of Delhi cops

JAIPUR: A 12-member team of the Delhi crime branch raided the ashram of self-styled godman Daati Maharaj, accused of raping a 25-year-old woman, in Aalawas of Pali district on Saturday.

The team searched the ashram, which has a school and a college on its premises, for three hours and recovered documents relating to the case. The rape survivor and her father accompanied the crime branch team for verifying the crime scene.

Local policemen were deployed to ensure law and order while the search operation was going on.

According to senior police officers of Pali, the team from Delhi arrived with a search warrant. “We provided them all assistance. They did not discuss the case. Our team from Sojat Road police station went with them to maintain law and order during the search,” said Pali police superintendent Deepak Bhargav.

The Delhi team was led by ACP Jasbir (crime).

They entered the ashram at 3.45pm and conducted the search till 7.44pm.

‘Checked rooms where woman was raped’

“We recovered various documents and checked the rooms where the survivor complained she was raped by Maharaj and others on different occasions. The search was to verify the crime scene and find any CCTV footage from inside the ashram and the school and college,” said a Delhi crime branch officer after completing the operation.

“We have given him (accused) notice to which he has replied. He may appear before us on Monday,” the officer said.

The rape survivor had filed a complaint against Maharaj at the Fatehpur Beri police station in south Delhi on Sunday. The case was subsequently transferred to the crime branch. Police have so far inspected another ashram of Daati Maharaj at Asola, Chatarpur, for gathering evidence. After registering a case, the Delhi police on June 13 examined the survivor and recorded her statement before a magistrate.

They have also issued a lookout circular against Maharaj to ensure that he does not leave the country.

During the investigation, the woman has alleged that she was a disciple of Maharaj for a decade. But after she was raped by him and two of his disciples, she returned to her native place in Rajasthan. She had alleged that a female disciple of the godman used to force her into his room and, when she refused, would tell her that other disciples also slept with him, the police said. She had also alleged that she was sexually abused at the godman’s ashrams in Delhi and Rajasthan and named two male disciples of Maharaj in the case.