The CBI has announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh for information leading to the arrest of self-styled “godman” Virender Dev Dixit, who is accused of sexually assaulting several women and minor girls.

Delhi police and the Delhi Commission for Women had last year rescued 40 girls from an ashram in the Rohini area. Dixit, who is in hiding, ran the ashram, the Adhyatmik Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya.

Dixit, 77, is said to have been obsessed with the idea of having 16,000 women with him. He apparently told his disciples that Lord Krishna had the same number of wives.

During the raid, the police claim to have discovered that the girls at the ashram were confined in cramped spaces without sunlight, and with metal grilles blocking their exit. They were allegedly not allowed to meet their relatives or friends.

In December 2017, Delhi High Court had asked the CBI to look into complaints lodged by a group of parents alleging that Dixit had sexually exploited several minor girls and women who were being held at the Rohini ashram.

The court had directed the agency to investigate the allegations of illegal confinement in “animal-like” conditions, in a fortress of a building surrounded by barbed wire.

The CBI has urged citizens to share with it any information they have that can lead to Dixit’s arrest. People can call 011-24368657 or send a fax to 01124368662 or an email to spstfdel@cbi.gov.in, agency spokesperson Nitin Wakankar said.

He said the identity of the informer would be kept a secret.

In March, the CBI had told the high court that its efforts to locate Dixit had yielded no results so far.

The agency had issued two “lookout circulars” on January 22 last year and February 22 this year against Dixit but to no avail. Lookout circulars alert immigration officials at borders, airports and seaports against people fleeing the country.

An Interpol notice to locate Dixit was issued on March 26 last year on a request from the CBI.