New Delhi, Sept. 25 -- A former chairman of a Delhi management college has been on the run for a month after being booked for allegedly molesting more than 17 students on campus in Vasant Kunj, police said on Wednesday. Swami Chaitanyananda Saraswati, also known as Dr Parthasarthy, was booked after students of Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management filed a complaint in August, officials said, and added that the suspect had been booked in similar cases in the past but had never been arrested. According to the complaint, Saraswati, who is in his sixties, targeted women on scholarships for those from economically weak families. The accused headed the institute that offers postgraduate management diplomas and is affiliated with the Sri Sri Jagadguru Shankaracharya Mahasamsthanam Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada Peetham, an organisation with ashrams and educational institutions across nine states. According to deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Amit Goel, the college administrator filed a complaint on August 4 alleging that Saraswati was sexually harassing women students pursuing courses under economically weaker section scholarships. According to the FIR, lodged on basis of complaint of PA Murali, the administration found out about the cases of molestation while they were investigating Saraswati for fraud and cheating. The FIR stated that the accused and his "co-conspirators" "pressured" the victims to give into the demands. "During inquiry, statements of 32 female students were recorded. Seventeen of them alleged they received obscene WhatsApp messages, dealt with abusive language from the accused and unwanted physical contact," Goel said. The students also alleged that female faculty and administrators pressurised them to comply with Saraswati's demands. Based on the statements, police lodged an FIR charging Saraswati with sexual harassment, act insulting the modesty of woman, and criminal intimidation. Saraswati's whereabouts are unclear and police said he was in London when the case was filed in August. A lookout circular has been issued against him for airports in India. Police suspect his last known locations could be Agra, Uttar Pradesh or Uttarakhand, where he often visits for speeches and to meet other spiritual gurus. "He filed for anticipatory bail but withdrew his application after we sent the court details of the statements," a senior officer said. Raids are ongoing in Delhi, Bihar, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and other places. The organisation has severed all ties with Saraswati, stating in a notice that he engaged in activities that were "illegal, inappropriate, and detrimental" to the institute's interests. The parent organisation has lodged complaints with relevant authorities. Investigators said the accused, who lived on campus, had been harassing students for months through WhatsApp messages threatening academic failure unless they met him privately. "One student was told she would fail all her exams unless she listened to 'Swami'. Another was asked for 'personal meetings' to help in her studies and career," an investigator said, asking not to be named. Police said some students reported the accused would ask them to visit him and listen to him "because he was teaching them spiritual things." Messages recovered by police included: "Come to my room...I will take you abroad...You won't have to pay anything...I will take care of you...But if you don't listen, you will fail..." Police said Saraswati and three female wardens deleted most WhatsApp chats. "All students have alleged that he would ask to come for meetings and threaten to fail them in exams if they resisted. We have also been told that these women [faculty members] not only pushed the students to meet Saraswati but also deleted their WhatsApp chats," a senior officer said. Three wardens have been called to join the probe, and phones have been sent for forensic examination. This is not the first time Saraswati has faced such allegations. Police records show five cases against him, including a 2009 case of fraud and molestation at Defence Colony police station and a 2016 molestation case, which is currently in trial stage, at Vasant Kunj police station involving another woman from the college. He was not arrested in either case. On why he was not arrested in those cases, officers said the allegations could not be verified and the complainants did not further approach the police for action. This year alone, three cases have been registered: the current molestation cases, a fake number plate case, and a cheating case involving the organisation's trustees. Police have analysed CCTV footage from the campus, with one officer stating they have evidence "proving" the accused was harassing a student. All footage has been sent to the forensic science laboratory. Sixteen victims have recorded their statements before a magistrate at Patiala House Court. In a related development, police discovered a Volvo car with a forged diplomatic number plate (39 UN 1) in the college basement after the molestation FIR was lodged. Nine additional forged plates were seized, leading to a second FIR on August 25 under charges of cheating and forgery. On Wednesday, the parent organisation of the institute issued a notice, saying that "legal action is being taken against Saraswati and he is not a monk of the order of Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri or of the lineage of the revered Saint Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankaracharya..."....