A Nashik court has summoned Mahant Gyandasji of Akhil Bharatiya Akhada Parishad after Prayag Peethadhishawar Sadhvi Trikal Bhawanta Saraswati Maharaj alleged that he had molested her.
According to Sadhvi Trikal Maharaj, the incident occurred during the Dhwajarohan ceremony of the Simhastha Kumbh Mela in Nashik on July 14, 2015. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and a host of senior leaders were present during the programme.
Sadhvi Trikal Maharaj on Wednesday told The Asian Age that during the programme, when she took the microphone to speak, Mahant Gyandasji pulled it out of her hand and denied her permission to speak. “He behaved in a manner unbecoming of a mahatma and manhandled me while using bad words. I thank the court for upholding the rights of women,” she told this newspaper from Prayag.
Adv Santosh Tarse said that the case was filed under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code in the court of JMFC Atul Tekale. The summons directed Mahant Gyandasji to appear in court on September 30. Sadhvi Trikal Maharaj said she had lodged a complaint with Panchavati police station but her complaint was not entertained and hence, she had to file a case in court.
During the Ujjain Simhastha Kumbh Mela, Sadhvi Trikal Maharaj had demanded that the Akhada Parishad grant recognition to her akhada and had also asked administration to allot separate timings for women to take the Shahi Snan. When denied, she attempted Samadhi in a 10-foot-deep trench. However, she was arrested by police. This time around, she had met officials of the Trimbakeshwar Mela administration and demanded separate timings for the Shahi Snan in Nashik last year.
