The 430-page chargesheet includes the statement of a victim who was allegedly lured by Nithyananda into having sex with him by promising her 'moksha'
The 430-page chargesheet includes the statement of a victim who was allegedly lured by Nithyananda into having sex with him by promising her 'moksha'
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) filed a 430-page chargesheet against Swami Nithyananda yesterday, a day after his 34th birthday was celebrated on a grand scale.
ADVERTISEMENT
In the web: The CID officials went to Himachal Pradesh and arrested
Swami Nithyananda and his devotee Nithya Bakthananda. The duo was
then brought to Bangalore. File pic
The chargesheet includes the statement of a woman who was allegedly raped several times after the spiritual leader told her that she would attain moksha if she had sex with him.
Police Superintendent KN Yogappa, who questioned 101 witnesses and collected 60 crucial documentary evidence against Nithyananda, said that the officials stumbled upon the victim (whose identity has been kept confidential) during the course of investigations.
The victim deposed that she was repeatedly raped by the swami not only at his ashram in Bidadi but also in other parts of the country.
The swami allegedly toldu00a0 the victim that if she subjected herself to his sexual demands, she would achieve enlightenment and that sex with him was the path to moksha.
During the course of the investigation, officials seized a number of agreements signed between the devotees and ashram authorities taking consent of the devotees for taking part in tantrik sex.
Many more such agreements were destroyed a few days before the case came to light.
Flashback
It may be recalled that the CID officials went to Himachal Pradesh and arrested the swami and his devotee Nithya Bakthananda, brought them to Bangalore, produced them before the Magistrate and interrogated them. Subsequently, both the accused obtained bail from the Court.
Nithya Sachidananda is now in judicial custodyu00a0 on the charges of destroying evidence at the Ashram.
'Video is genuine'
Investigating officers subjected the video CD produced by the complainant at the time of lodging an FIR for forensic analysis. The forensic expert said in a report that the video recording was genuine and that the image found in the video is conclusive of the presence of Nithyananda.
During the course of the investigation, officers clubbed both the cases registered against him at Bidadi police station and investigated them as one single case.
KN Yogappa, the investigator, filed a chargesheet in the case, against five accused in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ramanagar on November 27.
Both the above cases were registered in March 2010 at the Bidadi police station on the complaints of K Lenin, R/o Chennai. Subsequently, the CID took over the investigation.
| The accused and the charges |
| >> Swamy Nithyananda alias Raja Shekaran: Section 376 IPC (rape); 377 (unnatural sex); 417 (cheating); 506 (criminal intimidation); 120-B (criminal conspiracy). |
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
