Self-styled godman arrested in Delhi for sexual assault

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NEW DELHI: A 33-year-old self-styled godman was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting women on the pretext of helping them with their problems, police said on Wednesday.

Vinod Kashyap, who also runs a YouTube channel, was arrested in connection with two complaints of sexual assault registered at Dwarka North police station, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) M Harsha Vardhan said.

“Vinod ran the Mata Masani Chowki Darbar in Kakrola area. He also ran a YouTube channel, which has a large following,” the officer said.

“In both the cases, it was alleged that he called the women devotees on the pretext of helping with their problems and told them that they must do ‘guru seva’. He then sexually assaulted the women and threatened them not to disclose the incident,” he said.

The police registered two cases under Sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and arrested the accused. Further investigation is under way, Vardhan added.