The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday (March 25, 2026) granted anticipatory bail to Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, who is facing a case relating to allegations of sexual abuse of minors at his ashram. Granting the relief to Saraswati, Justice Jitendra Kumar Sinha noted that the victims did not narrate the incident to their natural guardian but to the complainant, who is a stranger. Justice Sinha said that this was not consistent with the normal course of human conduct and behaviour.
Justice Sinha also questioned the delay in filing the case against Saraswati and said that the victims were constantly accompanied by the informant and were not handed over to their parents or authorities before February 25, 2026. “The victims have stated that they had informed the first informant about the commission of the offence on 18.01.2026, and therefore, there is a delay of 6 days in lodging information to the police for the first time and for this, the first informant has assigned the reason that he was engaged in “Pooja / Yagya”,” the Court noted. The High Court had reserved the order on Saraswati’s plea on February 27, 2026, and had granted protection from arrest.
The High Court expressed displeasure over the fact that after the filing of the FIR, the victims were interviewed by various Hindi News Channels in violation of the established procedure of POCSO and the Juvenile Justice Act. “The victims were found giving interviews to leading Hindi News Channels, which is highly condemnable and deplorable in the facts and circumstances of the case and not consistent with law and procedure related to POCSO cases,” the High Court said.
“The medical report, as prepared by the doctor, does not find any external injury on the person of the victims, and it has been opined that the sexual assault cannot be ruled out, and an FSL report has been sought, which clearly shows that the conclusive finding has not been given by the doctor regarding the commission of sexual assault on the victims. The medical examination of the applicants has not been conducted, which is required in cases involving sexual assault,” the Court further noted.
Saraswati had approached the High Court on Tuesday (24th February) after the Uttar Pradesh Police filed an FIR against him and his disciple, Swami Mukundanand Giri, at the Jhunsi police station in Prayagraj, on the direction of a Special POCSO Court. Last month, a special POCSO Court ordered the police to register a case against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati on a complaint filed by Ashutosh Maharaj, the Peethadhishwar of Shakumbhari Peeth, and two minors.
