Swami Chinmayananda: Justice Banumathi recuses from hearing pleas challenging bail, seeking transfer of case

Justice R Banumathi has recused from hearing the pleas challenging the bail granted to Swami Chinmayanand and seeking the transfer of the rape case to Delhi..The Court had agreed to hear the plea for transfer of the case today after Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India SA Bobde on Friday..Gonsalves had told the Court that the accused in the case, Chinmayanand, has been enlarged on bail, and that the woman who had accused him of rape and sexual assault feared for her life..The transfer plea was subsequently listed before the Bench of Justices Banumathi and AS Bopanna today. While the Court's order today directs for the matter to be listed before a Bench not comprising either of the Judges before whom the case came up today, it remains unclear whether Justice Bopanna has also sought to be recused or not..List both the matters before some other Bench where Justice R. Banumathi and Justice A.S. Bopanna are not members, after obtaining orders from Hon’ble the Chief Justice of India.Supreme Court in its order today.The complainant in the case, an LL.M. student from the Swami Shukdevanand Law College (SS Law College) in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, had posted videos online levelling allegations of sexual harassment against Swami Chinmayanand..The student went missing three days after the allegations were made. She had reportedly submitted 43 videos to the investigating agencies to support her claims of having been blackmailed and raped by Chinmayanand..Both the student and Chinmayanand were later arrested. Whereas Chinmayanand was arrested in the rape case, the student was arrested on charges of extortion levelled by Chinmayanand. They were later granted bail by the Allahabad High Court..While granting Chinmayanand bail, the High Court had also directed that the trial be shifted from Shahjahanpur to Lucknow..Read Order: