Nityananda bound devotees with non-disclosure agreements

BANGALORE - Sex-scam tainted Swami Nityananda was interrogated by police Friday as new evidence surfaced that the self-styled god-man had made his disciples to sign non-disclosure agreement about sexual acts.

The 32-year-old Nityananda was on the run since March 3 after a video showing him in bed with two women was telecast and was arrested in Himachal Pradesh Wednesday. He was sent to police custody for four days late Thursday by a judicial magistrate in Ramanagara, about 40 km from here.

He was brought before the court in Ramanagara as he has an ashram in Bidadi, about 30 km from here, in Ramanagara district.

A youth hurled a footwear at Nityananda as he was coming out of the residence of the magistrate. It hit Nityananda on his legs, and the attacker was arrested.

Reports soon after the telecast of the video of Nityananda’s sex romp said he had tried to secure himself from any legal action by making his devotees sign papers agreeing to sexual acts as part of rituals to attain enlightenment.

The state police now say they have found from Nityananda’s ‘ashram’ (complex) in Bidadi copies of non-disclosure agreement that stated devotees had volunteered for such acts.

The agreement, copies of which have been accessed by media, states among other things that a volunteer understands that the programme “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 that the volunteer understands that activities “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”.

In an obvious attempt to protect Nityananada, the agreement adds that “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 organisation, management or conduct of any such programs from any liability, direct or indirect, arising from such activities”.

Police are now seeking information from Nityananda on how many of his thousands of devotees, a seizable number of whom are women, had been made to sign this agreement.

Nityananda alias Rajashekaran hailing from Tamil Nadu faces several criminal cases relating to obscenity, criminal intimidation, rape and hurting religious sentiments.

He also has devotees abroad. One devotee in the US has also filed a case against him in his country.

Bangalore police said they have been receiving several complaints of sexual exploitation and cheating after the scandal broke out and police appealed to people to come forward with information.

“It will be a long legal battle. We are verifying the information reaching us from several places and confronting Nityananda with it to know the scale of his illegal and immoral activities,” a police spokesperson said.