Varanasi, Feb. 23 -- Amid the alleged child sexual abuse case against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, a Shahjahanpur-based resident has claimed that attempts were made to pressure his family into filing a complaint against Jyotirmath Shankaracharya.

Ramakant Dixit, a resident of Shahjahanpur, alleged that three persons approached him and made him speak to Ashutosh Pandey over the phone.

"Three people came to me and made me talk to Ashutosh Pandey on my phone. They told us that Swamiji needs to be 'fixed' a bit. They talked about making allegations against Shankaracharyaji. I told them how you can say such things about my daughters... I have met Shankaracharyaji. I have not made any allegations against Shankaracharyaji." Dixit said....