Breaking News

BREAKING NEWS


Nithyananda rape case trial next date: 6 Sept. 2018


Updates from Courts

UPDATES FROM COURTS


Supreme Court DISMISSED ALL PETITIONS by Nithyananda and his Secretaries to Discharge them without a trial (June 2018)



NITHYANANDA FOUNDATION GUILTY OF FRAUD - US COURT ORDERED RETURN OF DONATIONS 2012

17 Retaliatory/false Complaints filed so far against whistleblower Dharmananda (lenin) by Nithyananda Cult Members!!!!

14 Retaliatory/false Complaints filed so far against victim Aarthi Rao by Nithyananda & his Cult Members!!!! (All of them after charge sheet against Nithyananda)

3 cases filed in the US against Accused 1 Nithyananda (Mr. Rajasekar), Nithyananda Foundation, Life Bliss Foundation,

4 cases filed in India against Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam for fraud:

Donors of Hyderabad Ashram, Rajapalayam Ashram,Trichy ashram and Seeragapadi Ashram (near Salem) demand that fraudulently obtained donations be returned

NITHYANANDA SLEAZE CD GENUINE : CID & FSL REPORT

Renowned Forensic Expert Padma Bhushan Prof. Dr. P. Chandra Sekharan states "video not morphed"


Nithyananda dismissed from Madurai Adheenam (on 19th Oct 2012), Nithyananda is banned from entering Madurai Adheenam mutt


Thursday, December 7, 2017

Justice Prevails! Supreme Court of India Decidedly Rules Against Nithyananda

In a landmark victory for justice, today, Thursday, 7 December 2017, the Supreme Court of India ruled against Swami Nithyananda and the other five accused.

Today Hon'ble Supreme Court of India finally has decided the Nithyananda case and restored faith of common person in the judiciary system. The Apex Court has directed a speedy trial and told courts below to follow the law laid down in Debendranath Padhi case.

This means:
  1. trial court must consider documents according to charge sheet
  2. the accused (Nithyananda) cannot compel trial court to look into self serving documents (such as his private/self-obtained impotency reports, etc), however court is free to look into any document beyond the charge sheet provided it is not disputed by prosecution or victim.

Justice prevails over evil.  The Supreme Court of India rules against Swami Nithyananda
and the other five accused.


This is a much needed and overdue victory for the victims of Nithyananda.

Once the Supreme Court Order is published, it will be posted here.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

CONFIRMED! It was 'Swami Nithyananda' in the 2010 sex video

New Delhi: In a major setback for Swami Nithyananda, a forensic lab test has confirmed the presence of the self-styled godman in a sex video.

In 2010, a sex video had surfaced which allegedly showed the godman in a compromising position with a Tamil actress.



Now, the Forensic Science Laboratory, Delhi, has confirmed that that tape was genuine and it was the godman who featured in the sex video.

Apart from the sex video, Nithyananda has been accused in cases of sexual exploitation and rape.



In fact, reports had stated that his ashram had made the godman's followers to sign non-disclosure agreements and they were later sexually exploited by him.

Source: Times Now News

http://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/swami-nithyananda-2010-sex-video-tape-tamil-actress-godman-delhi-forensic-science-laboratory-rape-sexual-exploitation/130592

Delhi Forensic Science Lab (FSL) Confirms Sex Swami Nithyananda Case: Authenticity of Sex Video

More bad news for Sex Swami Nithyananda.











Sunday, November 12, 2017

Madras High Court slams 'godman' Nithyananda for giving false information

It seems that Nithyananda has a credibility problem..... read on!

Madurai, Oct 30 (PTI) The Madras High Court today came down heavily on self-styled godman Nithyananda for giving "false" information to the court and asked why action should not be taken against him.

Justice Mahadevan wondered how could Nithyananda claim he was the 293rd pontiff of the Madurai Adheenam mutt, a 2,500- year-old Saivite mutt here, when the incumbent 292nd pontiff was alive.

"It does not look proper," the court said and asked "why action should not be taken against Nithyananda for giving false information to the court."

Godman Nithyananda paraded out from jail where he was held in 2012

The court was hearing a petition from one Jagadalapradhaban who sought a direction to ban Nithyananda from entering the mutt.

The self-sytled godman was attempting to capture Saivite mutts at several places across India, including in Karnataka, the petitioner alleged.

The petitioner submitted that Arunagirinathan was now heading the Mutt as the 292nd head.

Counsel for Nithyananda claimed he had been anointed as the 293rd pontiff and there was no way it could be cancelled.

Nithyananda, who was caught in a sex tape scandal in 2010 and facing rape charges, had said he should be allowed to perform certain rituals as per the mutt tradition and alleged that some "illegal elements" were threatening him and his disciples with dire consequences whenever they visited it.

The court posted the case for hearing on November 13.

source: Press Trust of India - 30 October 2017

http://www.ptinews.com/news/9193301_HC-slams---godman---Nithyananda-for-giving-false-information

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Swami Nithyananda Leaks More Lies to Cover His Rape Charges

A shocking false news is published today by Malai Murasu News regarding Vinay Bharadwaj, a witness in Nithyananda case.

Nithyananda plants another false story in the news.

ACTUAL FACTS ARE: Vinay had filed a case against Nithyananda in USA in 2011. He could not continue fighting the case due to financial reasons. Nithyananda took advantage of situation and got ex-parte order (same day order) from US court for lawyer fees!

The Mysore Court has only repeated US order for lawyer fees.

This deceit has NOTHING to do with rape case against Nithyananda. No court has ever declared that Vinay, Lenin, or Aarthi Rao are false witnesses in Nithyananda case. These are lies spread by Nithyananda and his criminal-minded ashram.

It is absolutely irresponsible and defamatory for any media to spread such false information against witnesses, without knowing or verifying the facts!

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Tantric Rites In The Bed

A boy from a pilgrim town went on to become a master in making his followers sex objects

Say “Sex and the Swamiji” in Tamil Nadu and the first name that pops up is that of Nithyananda. A video footage of Nithi (nickname given by the Tamil media) gallivanting on the bed with a Tamil actress continues to be one of the most watched footages on YouTube even six years after it was first aired on television.
This tall, dusky young man—originally A. Rajasekharan, from the pilgrim town of Thiruvannamalai—could spellbind audiences with his fluent oratory on Hindu spirituality. It stayed, till he got undone by a hidden video camera. That plot by two of his own disillusioned followers stripped him of his halo and exposed him as a sexual pervert.
There were others too fed up with Nithyananda’s wayward and pretentious ways. Like, a mechanical engineer who used to work in the US and surrendered at the feet of Nithyananda in search of spiritual awakening. Now 42, she was repeatedly sexually assaulted by the swami. The godman brainwashed her into believing that she was only doing “guru seva” by subjecting herself to his carnal pleasures.
“He would sweet-talk me into submitting myself to him, saying that he was like Shiva and I his Parvati and that our union would do the world a lot of good,” recalls the victim. “If he could do this to an educated woman who has seen the outside world, imagine the way he would have exploi­ted others.” In her deposition to the Karnataka police, the woman lists exact dates and places from 2005 to 2009 when Nithyananda compelled her to have sex with him.

Nithyananda allegedly forced a devotee to abort after she had become pregnant from her husband, saying motherhood would check her ‘enlightenment’.
Getting whiff of the video recording with the actress, Nithyananda, in 2009, had the other victim and rest of the ashram inmates to sign pre-dated non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) under which the disciples are expected to have tantric sex. Page ten of the NDA states that as part of the “Learning from the Masterprogram volunteer understands that the Program may involve the learning and practice of ancient tantric secrets associated with male and female ecstasy, including the use of sexual energy for increased intimacy/spiritual conne­ction, pleasure, harmony, and freedom”. It further states these activities “could be physically and mentally challenging, and may involve nudity, access to visual images...and descriptions of nudity and sexual activity, close physical proximity and intimacy, verbal and written descriptions and audio sounds of a sexually oriented, and erotic nature, etc.”
The disciple also gets to absolve the teacher or the ashram of any wrongdoing they may be accused of with the following clause in the NDA: “By reading and signing this addendum, Volunteer irrevocably acknowledges that he/she is voluntarily giving his (sic) unconditional acceptance of such activities and discharges the Leader (Nithyananda) and the Foundation, and anyone else not specifically mentioned here but directly or indirectly involved in the organisation, management, or conduct of any such programs from any liability, direct or indirect, arising from such activities.”
“None of us was given an opportunity to read through the agreement,” recalls the engineer woman. Her deposition as a witness adds meat to the chargesheet based on the compla­int by K. Lenin, a key disciple of Nithi, who sent the video recording to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka police (and also the media) with a complaint on how the swami had misused his image and the ashram’s reach to cheat people in the name of religion.
 “Though the chargesheet based on my complaint was filed in November 2010, Nithyananda used every trick to delay the trial,” notes Lenin. Eventually, following a Supreme Court dir­ective, Nithi underwent a test. A Bangalore hospital certified that he was not impotent and mentioned in its report that he did not cooperate when more tests were required, he adds.
Similarly, his voice sample was given only after the SC’s inter­vention and it was found to be “matching” with the phone conversation the godman had with Lenin. “In that phone call, he had pleaded with me to withdraw the complaint and had even justified his sexual escapades saying that late spiritualists like Ramakrishna, Vivekananda, Aurobindo and even Ramanar had female companions. The final chargesheet filed in 2015 said the two voices were a match. The trial has not progressed beyond the initial stages,” says Lenin.
To stop Lenin and the engineer woman from pursuing their cases, Nithi and his cohorts have filed at least 18 false cases against them across India and seven lawsuits in the US. They are forced to hop from court to court, seeking bail. Even as the rape and abduction case against him was pending in Karna­taka, Nithyananda got himself appointed as 293rd pontiff of the Madurai Adheenam, a 1,500-year-old math, in April 2012. After protests from the public and the state’s own HR and CE department, he was removed from the post after five months.
Today, Nithyananda’s devotees and math disciples face resistance in various parts of Tamil Nadu whenever they try to expand their activities there. “He expects Hindu outfits and other Hindu religious leaders to rally behind him, forgetting that he had single-handedly brought disrepute to our religion,” points out a leader of the Hindu Munnani.
***
Posers to Nithyananda
  • If he is innocent, why is he delaying the trial?
  • Why reluctant to give voice sample or undergo medical test (at a government hospital) to prove he is impotent?
  • He claimed that the video of him and a young actress was morphed. But the Forensic Science Laboratory later confirmed the authenticity of the visuals in the clip.

Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Karnataka’s self-styled godman Nithyananda’s case: SC likely to hear petitions in 10 days

            
Last Updated: 01st September 2017 09:26 AM    


BENGALURU: As the chapter finally closed on the long-drawn-out case of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh of Dera Sacha Sauda with his conviction and incarceration, Karnataka’s self-styled godman Nithyananda’s trial shows similar signs of being a lengthy legal process.The case against Nithyananda pending in the trial court in Ramanagara has not moved even an inch as several petitions related to the case are pending before the Supreme Court which has stayed the trial court proceedings. Interestingly, the SC is likely to take up the hearing in 10 days time after the hearing on the Cauvery water dispute concludes.
Nithyananda
Advocate for Karnataka in the Supreme Court, V N Raghupathy, told Express that the bench of Justices Dipak Misra and A M Khanwilkar which is hearing all matters related to Nithyananda, has indicated to the counsel that they should wait till the hearing on the Cauvery dispute is over. Justice Misra heads the three-judge bench along with Justices Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar on the Cauvery dispute. The bench is hearing the matter daily, leaving them no time to deal with other matters. “All the cases related to Nithyananda are tied to these hearings and we expect them to resume after next Thursday since the Cauvery dispute hearing will be over then,” he said.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had filed a chargesheet in November 2010 charging Nithayananda alias Rajasekaran with rape, cheating, criminal intimidation and unnatural sex. The case has seen its fair share of twists and turns. Nithyananda made news when a video of him in a compromising position with an actress found its way to Tamil TV channels.
Later, his driver Lenin Karuppan and another disciple Vishwanath filed a complaint based on which police had registered a complaint of rape and cheating. The case was quickly transferred to CID, which also filed additional charges. As he started facing heat, Nithyananda, who lived in his ashram near Bidadi, made a run for it but was arrested from Himachal Pradesh. He spent more than a month in jail before he was granted bail. Later, a former woman disciple also lodged a complaint of rape against the godman with theCID. In turn, Nityananda also filed several cases against her, one of them in the US. Counter-complaints were filed against Lenin Karuppan as well and at one time, Lenin went into hiding, fearing for his life.
Nithyananda also underwent potency tests of his own accord and tried to prove that he did not have the testosterone levels required to classify him as a man and hence he was not capable of having sexual intercourse. However, the Supreme Court directed him to undergo a potency test in 2014 as well as give blood and voice samples.
Nithyananda had also filed a petition seeking access to the statements of 32 people, who were members from his ashram including the actress. While the High Court allowed it, the state government challenged it and filed a Special Leave Petition saying those statements cannot not be handed over to him as they were not part of the chargesheet. This issue too is pending before the Supreme Court.
Non-disclosure agreement
The CID chargesheet mentioned the now famous 10-page non disclosure agreements that disciples of Nithyananda had to sign. Excerpts of the agreements included parts like the volunteer could “not disclose the existence of the agreement, the nature of any relationship between the volunteer and leader.” The agreement read: “...Volunteer also affirms that he/she does not find sexual or adult oriented material associated with the practice of any Tantric rituals or any other adult oriented material to be offensive or objectionable. Volunteer understands the Program may involve the learning and practice of ancient tantric secrets associated with male and female ecstasy including those of sexual energy for increased intimacy/spiritual connection, pleasure, harmony and freedom. Volunteer understands that these activities could be physically and mentally challenging and may involve nudity and access to visual images, graphic visual depictions and descriptions of nudity and sexual activity, close physical proximity and intimacy, etc.”


credit :http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2017/sep/01/karnatakas-self-styled-godman-nithyanandas-case-sc-likely-to-hear-petitions-in-10-days-1651032.html

Monday, September 4, 2017

India: Sex in the name Hindu gods




Related image


Last week I posted the rape trail of Guru Singh Ji-Insan in Panchkula (Haryana, India) which ended in 100 people dead and another 200 injured.


If you think that’s sickening – Sawmi Sri Paramahamsa Nithyananda aka Nithi in Tamil Nadu state in South India got hundreds of his female disciples signed a Sex Contract where they agreed to provide sexual enlightenment to the Swami. The contract was similar to Zionist entity’s Gag Order.
The survivors of sexual assaults in Nithyananda’s ashram have spoken out about non-disclosure agreements and sex contracts. The police charge-sheet of the rape case against Nithyananda reveals that sexual exploitation was masked in the guise of a Learning from the Master program.
Swami Nithi’s sex with Tamil actresses Ranjitha and Yuvarani were posted on You Tube in 2010 which have not taken down as yet.


Nithi’s sexual victims were not just ordinary Hindu illiterate girls and woman but he was able to sweet-talk some highly foreign educated Hindu girls to have sex with him to gain spirituality. For example an Hindu mechanical engineer from United States was repeatedly assaulted by the Swami making her believe that she was doing guru seva (service to godman to please Hindu gods).
He would sweet talk me into submitting myself to him, saying that he was like god Shiva and I his Parvati (here) and that our union would do good to the world,” she said. Read more here.
The other famous godmen in adultery and rape include Baba Parmanand, Asaram Bapu, Sant Rampal and Swami Bhimanand (here).

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Sexual crimes committed in the name of God: A look back at 'Swami' Nithyananda's 'sex contract'

While Gurmeet Ram Rahim gave ‘maafi’ to devotees, Nityananda followers were allegedly made to sign a contract where they agreed to ‘sexual enlightenment’.


Self-proclaimed godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the rape of two saadhvis at the Dera Sacha Sauda ashram. But the crime this rapist has been convicted for, is merely the tip of an iceberg shrouded in a dark web of lies and deceit practiced by the 'Guru'.
More horrors in his premises allegedly took place with the consent of followers - castration of male devotees, being the most gruesome of them.
From 2000, over 400 followers were reportedly brought under the scalpel in Dera Sacha Sauda hospital for bringing them closer to God.
But it isn’t just Gurmeet Singh who extracted sexual favours under ‘divine’ pretexts, cloaking them in secrecy. The survivors of sexual assaults in 'Swami' Nithyananda's ashram have spoken out about non-disclosure agreements and sex contracts. The chargesheet of the rape case against Nithyananda reveals that sexual exploitation was masked in the guise of a 'Learning from the Master' programme.
The mental conditioning
The chargesheet filed by the police in the Ramanagara court in November 2010 on a case of rape allegedly committed by Nityananda, speaks of five non-disclosure agreements signed by various victims.
In 2009, a 'special' group of men and women gathered in a room at the Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam, which is led by the 'godman' in Bidadi.
They were not just the regular followers of 'swamiji'. In fact they were a chosen few, who would take care of him and help in the running of his foundation.
On that particular day, they were given two sets of "non-disclosure agreement" contracts to sign in the presence of their leader.
Signing these would make them eligible for the "Learning from the Master" programme. Such was their blind trust in the self-proclaimed godman that most of them signed the papers without even reading the clauses, says the chargesheet.
The 'Sex Contract'
The most appalling section of the 10 page contract included in the chargesheet reads -
"Volunteer understands that the Program may involve the learning and practice of ancient tantric secrets associated with male and female ecstasy, including the use of sexual energy for increased intimacy/spiritual connection, pleasure, harmony, and freedom. Volunteer understands that these activities could be physically and mentally challenging, and may involve nudity, access to visual images, graphic visual depictions, and descriptions of nudity and sexual activity, close physical proximity and intimacy, verbal and written descriptions and audio sounds of a sexually oriented, and erotic nature, etc."
The contract further functioned as a gag order, threatening devotees with consequences if they were to reveal to outsiders.
"By reading and signing this addendum, Volunteer irrevocably. acknowledges that he/she is voluntarily giving his unconditional acceptance of such activities and discharges the Leader and the Foundation, and anyone else not specifically mentioned here but directly or indirectly involved in the organization, management, or conduct of any such programs from any liability, direct or indirect, arising from such activities," read the document.
One such agreement copy signed by the devotee had the date September 3, 2005. The document accessed by TNM clearly carries the name and address of the devotee and of an ashram trustee as well. So, did these followers willingly agree to sexual exploitation under the garb of a 'learning' programme?


"No, we did not," says a survivor, who signed one such document, to TNM.
Speaking to TNM, the survivor says that at the time of signing the documents they were unaware of what it said.
"We were given two copies. One had to be signed along with the date on the that day and the other had to be backdated to the day when we had first met him. So he was pretty much covered legally from the day we met him to any point in the future. Because the contract states that the agreement does not end even if the relationship does. It is like a perpetual binding agreement," the former devotee says.
The survivor further alleges that they were not given time to read the clauses and were told that it was "regular, routine stuff to do with confidentiality".
A few who tried to read the document were accused of wavering devotion. They were asked, "Don't you trust swamiji?"


“We had extreme trust in him and looked at him as someone who was beyond being an ordinary human being. We never even doubted that there could be anything in these documents that could have these kinds of implications,” a survivor said.
Those who tried to question the 'Swami' or his decisions were allegedly dealt with force, threat or intimidation.

Image source: www.nithyananda.org


Raped for enlightenment?
A chargesheet filed by the Bidadi police in November 2010, narrates how Nityananda 'convinced' one such devotee into having sexual relations with him. The survivor, named Amala* in the chargesheet, was a housewife and pregnant when he first decided to satisfy his 'illicit sexual desire' by using her.
She was brought to his room under the pretext of cleaning it and was asked to massage Nityananda's legs. This was when he allegedly embraced and kissed her on the lips. When she withdrew shocked, he told her that the act was for her enlightenment.
Amala argued that a physical relationship with a saint was wrong but Nityananda allegedly claimed that 'feeling love was a path to enlightenment' and that 'he was God'. The only way to attain spiritual enlightenment was to 'listen and obey his words'.
'Thus he attacked her mind and took control of it and made her go into a state of total surrender' says the chargesheet. It further claims that Amala lost her ability to think clearly and was overcome by blind faith. Following this she was raped multiple times in various hotels and the Bidadi Ashram.
According to the chargesheet, between February and March 2009, the victim "was made to sign, along with others, non-disclosure agreement documents".


The conditioning continues?
Now, with media attention back on self-proclaimed godmen and the exploitation they met out to devotees, several have come out to question the case pending against Nithyanandha.
What is shocking is that despite testimonies of the 'godman' forcing women into sexual activities being made public, a large number of people continue to root for him. When social activist and environmentalist Piyush Manush took to social media to ask about what action has been taken, he was at the receiving end of severe abuse.
Most of the abuse (unsurprisingly) was directed at Piyush’s mother, wife and daughter.


The case now
The case against Nithyananda is currently pending for trial at the Ramanagara sessions court, the trial has not even started. The accused has filed a discharge petition, where they have claimed that there is no prima facie case. Nityananda's counsel has requested that he be discharged without the hardship of trial. The Court's order on the petition is still awaited.
The judge can either order a discharge in which case the self-proclaimed godman will be acquitted without trial or he can order a trial saying there is enough material.
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, has stayed the trial court proceedings based on yet another petition filed by him in 2014 to consider his self-generated medical reports of impotency. Next hearing in the Apex court is scheduled for September 2017.


Nithyananda had earlier sought to be discharged as he was 'impotent' and had test results from an examination conducted in a private hospital to prove the same. However, tests ordered by the Supreme Court proved that the excuse was yet another lie.


In yet another attempt to allegedly evade the law, Nityananda claimed that statement recorded by the CID from 32 witnesses at his ashram must be included in the chargesheet. These were reportedly generic statements glorifying 'swamiji'. While the trial court rejected them as defense documents, the High Court of Karnataka ruled in favour of the 'godman'.


Affidavits and counter affidavits have been filed to delay the case. Though the complaint of rape was registered in 2009, the victim has been pushed from pillar to post, with justice delayed for eight long years. The only hope is that, at least now, justice is not denied.
Also read: Trapped in a religious cult: One woman’s story of sexual exploitation at the hands of a 'guru'

credit : http://www.thenewsminute.com/article/sexual-crimes-committed-name-god-look-back-swami-nithyanandas-sex-contract-67511

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Swami Nithyananda's Victim Speaks to Republic TV: Intimidation Tactics

Hear firsthand the intimidation tactics Nithyananda and his cult have used to harass one victim in an interview on Republic TV interview on 30 August 2017.

See how Nithyananda's money and power is used to intimidate others.

Please support the victims.




        
A former aide of Swami Nithyanand spoke exclusively to Republic TV’s Pooja Prasanna where she narrated the harassment she has been put through for the past seven years and filed complaints of rape against the self-styled Godman. She also revealed the techniques used by him to harass his followers inside the ashram physically, psychologically and sexually. The victim also went on to appeal that his properties be treated in a similar manner as rapist Ram Rahim’s Dera Sacha Sauda so that financial might is taken away and no longer used to harass his detractors.

On being questioned about the kind of techniques being used by Swami Nithyananda to intimidate her, the victim said that Nithyanand has been very smart in implicating her with "all kinds of tactics." She said that all these incidents only began after she filed the chargesheet against Nithyananda. She said, "for a person like Nithyananda if he reads the chargesheet statement,(inaudible) he can very clearly make out who is the person who has made the statement. So after the chargesheet was filed in November 2010, just a month later in December 2010, they filed a retaliatory case against me in Ramnagar."

The victim claimed that she was being wrongly accused of crimes she did not commit. She said, 'I have been running from pillar to post just to prove that I have not committed anything wrong. The person who has actually committed crimes (Nithyananda) is happy sitting in his ashram conducting programmes and carrying on his business of cheating and fooling more and more people."

She also spoke of how Nithyananda allegedly hired people to intimidate her and her family, not only in Bengaluru but other parts of the country as well. She said, "When I say Nithyananda, I include his followers because they don't really have a mind of their own. They act as his apostles and do whatever he says. This is the real challenge that we are facing legally. If a person is really harassing all the witnesses against him, we should get his bail cancelled."

credit: http://www.republicworld.com/s/6019/self-styled-godman-nithyanandas-former-aides-expose-him

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umBpV8s88vU

Kindly give a thumbs up to the video to counter Nithyananda's tactics to try to take this video down.

Look forward to your comments. Thanks!

Trapped in a religious cult: One woman’s story of sexual exploitation at the hands of a 'guru'

The godman told Veena that she was a special soul, and their sexual relation was an attempt to 'elevate' her.
She was inside the 'guru's' room. The privilege of cleaning his room and touching his belongings had been bestowed upon her yet again, and she was delighted...
Until, the guru who was in the room, suddenly hugged her. As he held her close, she panicked and ran out.
But she was told that the guru was not sexually harassing her, it was his exalted soul reaching out to her soul that deserved to be elevated.
The guru’s first 'blessings' to her were the start of her long nightmare.
***
As a 25-year-old working in a multinational in 2007, Veena* had everything going for her. She had a flourishing career where the money was good, and a loving husband.
And yet, she felt there was something amiss.
"On the surface, I had everything. I had all the reasons to be happy. But at some point, I realised that just looking after myself was not enough. I had grown up believing that life has a higher purpose. So, I thought, 'Can I do more with my degree? Can I use my knowledge to help people?'," she says.
Little did she know then that this yearning would drag her down a dark path, one from which she is still struggling to recover.
How I joined a cult
During a trip home in a state in south India the same year, Veena first came across 'guruji' on a spiritual channel her parents were watching. He was a Hindu godman, touted as a brahmachari.
She was instantly impressed.
"He was talking about dealing with challenges in life. What struck me most was the way he spoke. It was very clear, sensible and funny," she recalls.
Since guruji's ashram was nearby, she decided to pay a visit.
"It seemed like a nice place. Very peaceful and spiritual, bereft of any grandeur. He was travelling abroad then, and I couldn't personally meet him. I picked up some books on meditation from the ashram," she says.
The books were in essence similar to most spiritual books — they revolved around expressing love, finding happiness and contentment.
"It appealed to me because it was not close minded or too religious. Perhaps anyone who practices these may find peace," she now thinks.
To top that, guruji's disciples would make anyone around him think that the energy they felt was merely because of their leader's presence. And yet it was never in-your-face. "As I understood later, the technique used was a very subtle psychological influence."
And it worked, because a year later, the educated, independent woman quit her job to work full-time for guruji.
Though the common misconception is that only 'crazy, unstable, or weird people' join cults, a paper published in the Cultic Studies Journal by Janja Lalich, has shown that most cult members are of above-average intelligence, come from stable backgrounds, and do not have a history of psychological illness.
"Cult leaders and cult recruiters tend to capture the hearts, minds, and souls of the best and brightest in our society," the research says.
"A marketing guy"
India has no dearth of self-styled godmen, and there have been a string of incidents involving gurus, and their alleged role in sexual assault, extortion and cheating.
"Our family too had gurus but all of them were revered long after their death. So, it took some time to believe that a living person could also attain the same status. He made us believe he was one of those rare living gurus of our generation. He told us that if we prayed to him, all our wishes would come true," Veena says.
She also calls him a great marketing guy. "He just sells himself so well. If you attend one of his programmes, you'll be dying to attend the next one as well."
The ambience would only add to the aura.
Sucked into a vortex
"Why do you want to quit your job? You are so young. You can do this on the side," Veena's concerned family told her when she informed them of her plans to embark on her spiritual journey.
"But I was so sure," she says. "I felt so strongly about joining a spiritual group to spread happiness and peace through meditation and spirituality.”
Soon, she became part of a select group of people who worked closely with the godman and looked after the running of his empire.
"It was a big privilege to touch his belongings. One day, I was told that I could clean his room. From then on, I would clean his room every day. During one such occasion, he was there in the room. He hugged me. Not in a way a guru would, but just as a man would hug a woman he was interested in," she says.
A terrified Veena ran out. But she was summoned again, and the guru 'explained' to her that mere mortals like her saw 'human bodies', while he only saw the soul.
"He told me that every avatar of god would find another soul who needed to be elevated. Like Krishna found Radha and blessed her soul. I was his Radha, he said. Normally, after a session, he would hug a few chosen disciples. This included children, young, middle aged and old people. We were constantly told that he was only touching our soul," she said.
For months, what Veena went through was mental conditioning. She was told that the guru’s touch was only for a select lucky few who were very spiritual souls.
The hug had soon progressed to sex and Veena was coerced to believe that it was a path to salvation. She was given the guru’s special blessing whenever he desired it.
"Though he would hug a few of us, he told me not to tell others about our relationship. I was the special one, the only one who was blessed to be his soul mate (have intercourse with him)," she says.
The state of affairs went on for several years. As a young educated woman, why did Veena not walk away from there? Can this be considered sexual assault or rape? Over the years, many have asked her this.
"This is how a cult works; this is how power structures work. It was ingrained into us that the guru was supreme and worldly pleasures meant nothing to him. Every time the abuse happened, he would tell me that my soul had become a bit more elevated and I was almost at the next level," she said.
The Bhagavatham and other revered Hindu scriptures were constantly quoted to her. "I was told that though I was a special soul, I was not discovered by a guru in my previous births."
Wiping out evidence
The guru, however, was a clever man, who ensured that there was no trace of evidence.
In many cases in India and throughout the world, it has been well documented how such gurus wipe out evidence.
Premananda Swamy convicted in 2005 would facilitate abortions. Aravindan Balakrishnan (a Maoist cult leader) established himself as someone who could control nature and it was proved in a court in UK that he would first isolate victims from families, so that they never betrayed his secrets. He was convicted of six counts of indecent assaults and four counts of rape in 2015.

Swami Premananda: Source
Another guru in India, (according to a victim’s statement to court), used to tell the victim that he would dispose of the condom as his semen was special and no mere mortal should get hold of it. He convinced the victim that his semen should be poured into the ocean.
In Veena’s case too, the guru was careful to keep his assault a secret, and to be discreet.
As Veena narrates this, she adds as an afterthought. "All this sounds ridiculous to me now. But when I was in the situation, I was constantly made to believe and accept it as right without questioning."
Janja Lalich says in her research that cults that exploit people, especially women, project the assault as a matter of honor. "The woman is told that a sexual encounter with the leader is an honor, a special gift, a way of achieving further growth. Sexual activities with the leader are interpreted and rationalized as spiritually beneficial."
The guru and disciples
Every disciple shared a unique relationship with the guru and all of them were strictly prohibited from discussing it among each other. Veena says, "To some he was a mother figure, for some it was a master-sevak relationship. And it was up to him to decide which relationship was ‘right’ for which person."
People from all walks of life would throng to see him. Some were just like her, wanting to make the world a better place, and a few quite like him, manipulating people for their gain.
Exploitation
Going against the guru is the greatest of sins, they were told. They would repent, not just in their current life but also in their coming lives, if they did so. They would suffer, suffer horribly.
And the best way to prevent a revolt is never give it a breeding ground in the first place.
Cult members were always overworked with assignments and had strict deadlines to follow. "We hardly had time for anything else. We were extremely exhausted and sleep deprived as we slept for not more than four hours a day. No one had the mind to question anything," she says.
If someone did question him, they would immediately be outcast. Threats and intimidation were also used to shut victims up when needed.
The realisation
As the years passed, Veena also realised how the cult was fueled solely by its greed. "Only the rich were allowed to personally meet him. If you weren't bringing him business, you were of no use to him," she says.
There were murmurs of others who were given the guru’s blessings and were forced to become his sexual partners.
When the truth finally hit her, and with the intensity that it did, it pushed her into depression.
"I was in a state of shock. I kind of just wanted to forget that I had lived this life," she says. “But then I realised that many more innocent victims were getting sucked into the cult everyday. I felt I must tell what happened to me, so that it can save others."
Seven years after she joined the group, she finally left it. She also filed a complaint with the police and the case in underway in court.
Why not quit?
Cults in Our Midst, a book by Margaret Thaler Singer, a clinical psychologist and an expert on brainwashing, and Janja Lalich, an author and researcher, explains how cult groups resort to thought-reform processes and persuasion to control people’s minds.
This book was an eye-opener for Veena as it helped her to understand why a rational person like her would join a cult.
It is simple to ask why someone would not leave a cult immediately when they realise they are in a wrong place.
But as Singer and Lalich state, the answer is not that simple. Even though cults mostly don’t use physical restraint on their members, there are several psychological barriers stopping them from walking away. This includes their beliefs, peer pressure, fear or even confusion.
The last few years have been punishing for Veena. The fight has been emotionally, physically and financially draining.
Looking back, she says, "Life has taught me many, many lessons and I am very grateful for that. But I still believe I have a bigger purpose in life."
*Names and places have been changed to protect the identity of the victim.
credit : http://www.thenewsminute.com/article/trapped-religious-cult-one-woman-s-story-sexual-exploitation-hands-guru-64524

Sunday, August 27, 2017

Truth Will Prevail - Judgment in Ram Rahim Criminal Case

Satyameva Jeyate! Today the judgment in Ram Rahim case has proved again to us that truth and justice will win ultimately. I am very happy that the victims can finally find peace and closure. They were strong and bold and they finally got justice!

This judgment today has once again proved that all are equal before the law, even if he, the perpetrator, is a godman with lakhs of followers. I only feel sad that the victims had to wait 15 years for this judgment. I wish that in all such cases, government and judiciary can take steps to ensure that the trial happens fast.

Also, it is very important that victims and witnesses should get protection from intimidation by fake godman's followers. They still need protection even through the trial is over. I appeal to the government to protect the whistleblowers, victims, and witnesses in such cases.

I praise the judiciary for upholding the truth. I have full faith that just like this case, truth will win in our case, and the fake godman Nithyananda will also be convicted soon.

Justice soon will come to Nithyananda just as it did to Ram Rahim.


Are the Charges Against Nithyananda Like Ram Rahim Singh Rape Verdict?

Similar to Nithyananda? Ram Rahim Singh rape verdict: It all started with an anonymous letter in 2002

(as published in The Times of India on 25 August 2017 and Daily Sikh Updates Post on Facebook August 25, 2017:
Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee,
Prime Minister
New Delhi

I am a girl hailing from Punjab State. I have been serving as a 'Sadhwi' in 'Dera Sacha Sauda', Sirsa (Haryana) for the last five years. Beside me, there are hundreds of others girl here, who serve for 18 hours daily.

Ram Rahim Singh showing the ladies that he has style,
just like Sex Swami Nithyananda.
But we are sexually exploited here. The 'Dera Maharaj' Gurmeet Singh rapes the girls in the 'dera'. I am a graduate. My family has blind faith in the 'Maharaj' (Gurmeet Singh). It was at my family's bidding that I became a 'Sadhwi'. Two years after I became a 'Sadhwi', a special woman-disciple of Maharaj Gurmeet Singh came to me one night at 10' o' clock and said that the Maharaj had summoned me to his room. I felt elated that Maharaj himself sent for me. I was going to him for the first time. After climbing the stairs, when I went into his room, I saw that he was holding a remote in his hand and was watching a blue film on the TV. Beside his pillow on the bed, lay a revolver. Seeing all this, I was frightened and became nervous. I had never imagined that Maharaj was a man of this type. Maharaj switched off the TV and seated me beside him. He offered me water and said that he had called me because he considered me very close to him. This was my first experience.

Maharaj took me in his embrace and said that he loved me from the core of his heart. He also said that he wanted to make love with me. He told me that at the time of becoming his disciple, I had dedicated my wealth, body and soul to him and he had accepted my offering. When I objected, he said, "There is no doubt that I am God." When I asked if God also indulges in such acts, he shot back:

1. Sri Krishna too was God and he had 360 'gopis' (milkmaids) with whom he enacted 'Prem lila' (love drama). Even then people regarded him as God. So, there is nothing to be surprised at it.

2. I can kill you with this revolver and bury you here. The members of your family are my devoted followers and they have blind faith in me. You know it very well that members of your family cannot go against me.

3. I have considerable influence with governments also. Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana and central Ministers come to pay obeisance to me. Politicians take help from us. They cannot take any action against me. We will get the members of your family dismissed from govt. jobs and I will get them killed by my 'Sewadars' (servants). We will leave no evidence of their murder. You know that earlier also we got the 'dera' Manager Fakir Chand killed by goondas. His murder remains untraced till this day. The 'dera' has a daily income of one crore rupees with which we can buy leaders, police and the judges.

After this, the Maharaj raped me. The Maharaj has been doing this with me for the last three years. My turn comes after every 25-30 days. Now I have learnt that before me too, the Maharaj had been raping the girls he had summoned. Most of these women are now 35 to 40 years old and they are past the age of marriage. They have no other option but to remain in the 'dera'.

Most of the girls are educated --- B.A., M.A., B.Ed, etc. But they are living a life of hell in the 'dera', simply because the members of their families have blind faith in the Maharaj. We wear white clothes, tie a scarf on the head, cannot even look at men and as per Maharaj's commands, and talk with men from a distance of 5-10 feet. To the people we look like 'devis' (goddesses), but we are living like harlots. This time I tried to tell my family that all was not well at the 'dera'. But they rebuked me saying that there was no better place than the 'dera' for here they were in the company of God (Maharaj). They said that I had formed a bad notion about the 'dera' and that I should recite the name of 'Satguru'. I am helpless here because I have to obey every command of the Maharaj. No girl is permitted to talk with another, according to the commands of the Maharaj.

Girls are not permitted to talk to their families even on the telephone. If any girl talks about the reality of the 'dera', she is punished according to Maharaj's commands. Sometimes ago, a Bhatinda girl revealed the wrong doings of the Maharaj. At this, all the women disciples gave her a sound thrashing. Because of a fracture in the backbone, she is now bed-ridden. Her father gave up the service in the 'dera' and went home. For fear of the Maharaj and his own disgrace, he is not revealing anything.

Similarly, a Kurukshetra girl has also left the 'dera' and has gone home. When she narrated the events in the 'dera' to her family, her brother who worked in the 'dera' gave up his job. When a Sangrur girl left the 'dera', went home and narrated the wrong-doings in the 'dera' to the people, the dera's armed Sewadars/ hooligans reached the girl's house and threatened to kill her and warned her not to leak anything about the 'dera'.

Similarly, girls from Mansa, Ferozepur, Patiala and Ludhiana districts are afraid of revealing anything about the 'dera'. Although they have left the 'dera', yet they do not say anything for fear of loosing their lives. Similarly, girls from Sirsa, Hissar, Fatehabad, Hanuman Garh and Meerutdisclose as to what happened to them in the 'dera'.

If I reveal my name, I and my family will be killed. I want to reveal this truth for the benefit of the common man, because I cannot bear all this tension and harassment. My life is in danger. If a probe is conducted by the press or some government agency, 40 to 50 girls living in the 'dera' will come forward to reveal the truth. We can also be medically examined to find out whether we are still celibate disciples or not. If we are no longer virgins, the matter should be gone into to find out who has violated our chastity.

The truth will then come out that Maharaj Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh of 'Sacha Sauda' has ruined our lives.

The GURU enjoyed 7 star life style and Bangkok type sex life All with the money donated by poor devotes Sharma Narendra

Yours faithfully

An innocent forced to live life in a hell (Dera Sacha Sauda Sirsa)
Question?: Does this look similar to the same tactics that Nithyananda has done against his victims?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Friday, May 26, 2017

Nithyananda case: SC to hear final arguments on July 17

New Delhi, Apr 19 2017, 1:57 IST


The Supreme Court on Tuesday fixed July 17 for final arguments in the case related to rape charges against Nithyananda of Dhyanapeetam at Bidadi, Ramanagaram district.

When the case came up for hearing before a three-judge bench headed by Justice Deepak Mishra, Shekhar Naphade, the advocate representing Nithyananda, said a minimum of two hours was required for him to make the submission. The bench said the matter would be heard after the summer vacation and fixed July 17 for final arguments.

The Supreme Court is hearing the Karnataka government’s petition challenging the order of the Karnataka High Court, wherein the prosecution was ordered to provide to the accused the statements of 32 witnesses, including that of a Tamil actress, the CD of whose purported video with the Swami had led to registration of criminal cases.

The high court had also directed furnishing medical records of another victim and her email conversations.

The Karnataka government, represented by additional advocate general Devadutt Kamat, said at this stage, the suspect was not entitled to documents which were not part of the charge sheet.

Nithyananda, facing charges for offences of rape and indulging in unnatural sex, was arrested on April 22, 2010.

He was granted bail on June 11 that year.He was directed by the apex court in 2014 to undergo potency test and give blood and voice samples required for investigation of the case registered on March 4, 2010.


http://www.deccanherald.com/content/607100/nithyananda-case-sc-hear-final.html