Swami Nithyananda arrested in Himachal Pradesh

The Bangalore Police, with the cooperation of Himachal Pradesh Police, arrested Swami Nithyananda (the self-styled Paramahamsa Nithyananda, who claims to be enlightened) from a hideout in the Solan District of Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday. Reproduced below is a Press Note issued by the Bangalore Police on his arrest:

A team of Karnataka State CID took into custody Swamy Nithyananda in Solan District of Himachal Pradesh this afternoon. Along with Sri Nithyananda Swamiji, Sri Nithya Bhaktananda alias Gopal Seelam Reddy has also been taken into custody. Both these persons are wanted in connection with two cases registered at Bidadi Police Station. Both the persons are being produced before the local Magistrate and after securing body warrant, they will be brought to Bangalore.

A CID team conducted a search of the Ashram of Nithyananda Swamiji at Bidadi on 20.4.2010, and seized important documents including computer hard disks.

Dr D V Guruprasad

Director General of Police

COD, Training, Special Units & Economic Offences

Bangalore

Nithyananda Swami who has been charged in a sex scandal, and other counts including fraud and cheating, as per various reports, has been hiding since March 23 after the Karnataka High Court dismissed his plea for invalidating the criminal charges against him and for providing him an anticipatory bail. Nithyananda was arrested from Mamlig village near Arki town in Solan district of Himachal Pradesh, where ‘he was staying in a rented house for the past one month, quoted Additional Director General of Police I.D. Bhandari.

According to reports, Swami Nithyananda, will be taken to a local court in Solan District or Simla for transfer remand and soon after he will be moved to Karnataka, where he has an Ashram at Bidadi near Bangalore, or to Tamil Nadu, where he was born in Thiruvannamalai.

It is reported that the warrant was issued against him following a complaint of an advocate, who accused Swami Nithyananda of ‘hurting religious sentiments of people of India’ and doing a malicious act by indulging in affairs with a Tamil actress and other women without their consent.