Karnataka and beyond: when swamis become predators
Another swami, another sex scandal. The headlines repeat themselves with numbing regularity. Figures who should have been guardians of dharma and protectors of women are increasingly unmasked as predators—draped in saffron robes, trading in piety while committing crimes that shatter faith. The latest case involving Baba Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati—originally Parthasarathy from the South, until recently head of a Delhi institution linked to Sringeri—has once again exposed the rot. Nineteen girl students have accused him of harassment, threats, and inducements, while seventeen others reported obscene messages. Delhi Police are on his trail, but questions linger: how did a man with such allegations festering for months continue to head a prestigious institution? Who in power looked away? Karnataka has become the epicentre of these scandals. In Chitradurga, the arrest of Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru of the Murugha Mutt under POCSO was a watershed moment. For years, political lead...