NEW DELHI (AP) - A 23-year-old law student who accused a leader of India's governing party of sexual assault has been arrested on charges of extortion.

A police official says the woman is accused of demanding nearly US$700,000 (S$964,000) from the lawmaker, Chinmayanand, who uses one name.

In August, the student accused Chinmayanand, a Bharatiya Janata Party leader and president of the college where she studies, of sexual assault, harassment and intimidation. His lawyer has denied the allegations.

The police official says the woman was arrested on Wednesday (Sept 25) and sent to judicial custody in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

The BJP has a chequered history of its leaders being accused of sexual assault. In August, lawmaker Kuldeep Singh Sengar was sacked from the party after being accused of raping a 17-year-old girl in 2017.