Chinmayanand is accused by a student at a law college run by his trust of sexual harassment.
New Delhi: Former Union Minister Chinmayanand, in jail since September over allegations of sexually exploiting a law student, was granted bail today by the Allahabad High Court.
Chinmayanand is accused by a student at a law college run by his trust of sexual harassment.
He was charged with abusing his position as a person in authority to "induce or seduce" a woman under his charge to have "sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape".
Chinmayanand also faces charges of stalking, wrongful confinement and criminal intimidation.
The 23-year-old law student was also arrested for allegedly trying to extort Rs 5 crore from Chinmayanand. She was released on bail in December, two months after her arrest.
The former Union minister had alleged that she and her friends had threatened to make public some video clips that showed him getting massages from the student.
The case went public when the student vanished on August 24 after putting up a Facebook post without naming the politician.
Chinmayanand's legal team responded by filing an extortion case. The Uttar Pradesh police tracked her down a week later, after which the Supreme Court heard her allegations and ordered an inquiry by a special investigation team.