Swaminarayan temple priest arrested in sex scandal

The priest of a Swaminarayan temple was among four persons arrested in Junagadh city in an alleged sex scandal expose involving the sect.

"The priest, Bhaktiswarup and three touts were arrested by the crime branch late on Monday night under Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act," D G Vanzara, Additional Commissioner of Police (crime), told reporters in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

"The priest has been arrested for women trafficking, while the three accused - Mansuk Patel alias Mansuk Bhagat, Banubhai Patel alias Banu Bhagat and Takkarsinh Patel - were arrested for making sleazy videos of the sexual act and distributing it in form of CDs," Vanzara said.

"Several books containing nude photographs of women, a copy of Vatsayana's Kamasutra, condoms, contraceptive pills and sleazy literature were also recovered during the raid at Bhaktiswarup's residence at Junagadh," he added.

The three Ahmedabad-based accused used to make CDs of different Swaminarayan sadhus involved in sex, Vanzara said.

"The CD in possession of the crime branch is a compilation of such sexual acts involving different sadhus with different women," he said.