"Govt diverting attention": Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati denies POCSO allegations

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 23 (ANI): Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, on Monday, termed the POCSO Act case against him a "tactic" by the government to divert attention from the demand of ban on cow slaughter.
Speaking to ANI, Swami Avimukteshwaranand accused the government of "attacking" the Shankracharyas.
He further said that the other accused in the alleged POCSO case were not linked to his Gurukul.
The religious leader said, "We meet the public from time to time. This government wants that we should be both the religious leaders and the government. There are four Shankaracharyas in the country who have always protected Sanatan Dharma. Now they have started attacking them. Truth never ends; it always remains. The voice has been raised for the ban on cow slaughter, and we will continue to raise this voice even louder. These people want to divert the attention of the public to something else."
"The people of the country want cows to be protected. By meeting the Shankaracharyas of all four Peeths, we are running this movement for the protection of Mother cow."
"The students who are being talked about are not from our Gurukul," he added.
Earlier today, the Uttar Pradesh Police arrived at the residence of Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati to arrest him in an alleged sexual assault case.
Speaking to mediapersons, the Swami said that he will not oppose the police in any way and will cooperate with them.
"We will not oppose the police in any way; we will cooperate with them. Whatever the police do, the public is watching everything. Look, for us there are three courts. One is the lower court, one is the middle court, and one is the Supreme Court. The lower court is the public -- the people are watching everything, and they are the ones who will give the verdict. The middle court is our own conscience -- we know within our hearts whether we are wrong or not. And the third is God, the Supreme Court -- He is also watching who is wrong and who is right. So in such a situation, we have a clean chit from all three courts," Swami Avimukteshwaranand told reporters.
Denying all allegations against him, he demanded that the CCTV footage and the purported CD to be made public.
The religious leader said, "The lies are eventually exposed. The story will be proven false, if not today, then tomorrow, if not tomorrow, then the day after. We were within the reach of your cameras. CCTV cameras are installed everywhere in Prayagraj. They had installed them everywhere so that if anything happens, they can monitor it from the war room, and they will have everything recorded. Our bus wasn't parked inside our camp, because after the police brutality against us, we didn't enter the camp. So, in this situation, everything is captured by CCTV. Those boys never entered our Gurukul, never studied, and we have nothing to do with them. They are students of a school in Hardoi, as evidenced by their marksheets submitted in the lawsuit."
"So, when they never came here, and have nothing to do with this place, how can anyone do anything to them? And thirdly, they are spreading confusion by saying, 'There's a CD' so why isn't it being made public? These are all questions that will be asked in the coming days, and they will have to answer them," he added.
An FIR lodged at Jhunsi police station against Jyotish Peeth Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari, and others following directions from a Special Court under the POCSO Act.
The FIR has been filed under Section 351(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, along with Sections 3, 4(2), 6, 16, 17 and 51 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. The allegations relate to incidents said to have occurred between January 13, 2025 and February 15, 2026. The complaint contains serious charges concerning sexual offences involving minors.
Special Judge (POCSO) Vinod Kumar Chaurasi, after hearing a petition filed by Ashutosh Brahmachari, observed that the material on record disclosed cognisable and punishable offences under the relevant laws. The court directed the SHO of Jhunsi police station to register the FIR without delay and proceed in accordance with the law. (ANI)