Yoga guru Anand Giri arrested in Australia's Sydney for sexually assaulting 2 women

Self-proclaimed yoga and spiritual guru, Swami Anand Giri, has been arrested in Australia's Sydney for the sexual assault of two women followers.

According to a report in news portal SBS, Anand Giri assaulted a woman in 2016 when he was attending a prayer meet in Rooty Hill. In the second incident, he assaulted a 34-year-old woman in November 2018.

Swami Anand Giri was arrested in Sydney during a spiritual tour for six weeks. He was supposed to fly back to India soon when he was arrested on May 5.

Anand Giri has been denied bail and has now been remanded in custody and has been asked to reappear before the court in June, reported SBS.

WHO IS ANAND GIRI

The accused guru, Swami Anand Giri, is mahant at the Bade Hanuman temple in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj and also the Math Baghambri Gaddi.

The 38-year-old is a self-proclaimed spiritual guru and yoga



expert.

According to his Facebook page, Swami Anand Giri aims to "serve others and somehow contribute to making this world a better place".

His Facebook page is filled with photos of him posing with BJP leaders and Union ministers like VK Singh, KJ Alphons and others. He has also shared photos of him with Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and Yogi Adityanath.

He was widely photographed during the recent Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj and was seen taking a dip along with other seers in the Ganga.

Anand Giri has also practiced yoga with Ramdev, who is famous for his yoga skills.

According to reports, the yoga guru also teaches as a guest lecturer at several universities and is part of several school and college events that aim to guide the students on lessons of life.

While his personal website has been taken down, the International Yoga Festival site says Anand Giri has spent most of his early life in the Himalayas, taking lessons in yoga.