The Supreme Court today directed the Uttar Pradesh Government to set up a special investigation team , headed by an IG-rank officer, to investigate the charges levelled by a Shahjahanpur woman law student, who has accused former Union minister and BJP leader Swami Chinmayanand of harassment, as well as the two related FIRs, and said an Allahabad High Court Bench will monitor the probe.

After an in-chamber interaction with the woman and her parents, a Bench issued a slew of directions, including asking the state to provide police protection to her parents and family members and explore the possibility of admitting the woman and her brother in another college at Bareilly.

The woman had gone missing after levelling allegations against Chinmayanand in a video and was later found in Rajasthan by the UP Police.The apex court judges said the woman had raised certain grievances against the institution where she studied and her mother and father have some apprehensions about the safety of their children.

The Bench, however, underscored that it was not expressing any opinion on the grievances and apprehensions raised by them. “All that we want is correction of such grievances and apprehensions to be verified. State of Uttar Pradesh is directed to set up a special investigation team headed by an officer not below the rank of Inspector General of Police and comprising an officer of the rank of Superintendent of Police and other officials to investigate the apprehensions expressed by the parents.