I approached Nithyananda during elections: Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar

The ministry of external affairs  is searching for Nithyananda, who is accused of kidnapping two girls. His passport is said to have expired and the court has not given him permission to renew it. Meanwhile, Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar's photograph with Nithyananda goes viral.  

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Police have stated that it is likely that Nithyananda has fled the country. However, reports claim that Nithyananda's passport expired last year. Even the court has not given him permission to renew it.

Now, Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar's photograph with Nithyananda has gone viral. Reports have surfaced claiming Congress has a tie-up with Nithyananda.

Shivakumar spoke on the photograph and said, "I met him more than a year ago for few minutes when I went to his ashram during elections. We meet many god-men, they are also a part of our constituency. I don't know the issues associated with that person."

Petitioners Janardana Sharma and his wife told the Gujarat high court on Monday (November 18) that their two elder daughters, Lopamudra Janardhana Sharma and Nandita  who were studying in Nithyananda's Yogini Sarvagyapeetham institution had refused to accompany them home.

Nithyananda is on the run as he is accused of kidnapping two girls from Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, Ahmedabad rural police have arrested Hitesh Puri, principal, Delhi Public School (DPS) East, for granting land for Nithyananda Ashram in Hirapur area. Police said the action was taken as Puri did not intimate concerned police station before renting out the land.

The Gujarat Police is in touch with the ministry of external affairs (MEA) and other agencies to know the whereabouts of self-styled Godman Swami Nithyananda, against whom a case was registered for alleged kidnap and wrongful confinement of children to make them collect donations from the followers to run his ashram in Ahmedabad.

The ministry of external affairs said it needs location details of a person to initiate extradition process. We've no formal info, neither from Gujarat Police nor from the ministry of home affairs. Also, for extradition request, we need the location and nationality details of the person. We don't have such information about him yet," MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.

The Gujarat Police on Thursday had said that Nithyananda has fled the country, and the police are working to gather concrete evidence against him.

Ahmedabad Rural Superintendent of Police (SP) RV Asari told IANS, "We have registered a case against Nithyananda and others and arrested two of his disciples Sadhvi Pran Priyananda and Priyatatva Riddhi Kiran on charges of allegedly kidnapping at least four children, keeping them in illegal confinement in a flat and using them as child labourers to promote the activities of the ashram to collect donations."

When asked about the whereabouts of Nithyananda, Ahmedabad Rural superintendent of police (SP) RV Asari said, "We are in touch with various other agencies to know the whereabouts of the godman."

The Ahmedabad Rural SP further said, "We are also in touch with MEA as we have to follow the proper channels."

Another senior police officer related to the probe said that the two disciples of Nithyananda were arrested after two children in the age group of 9 and 10 years, enrolled at the ashram, told the cops that they were tortured and made to work as child labour and kept in illegal confinement at a flat in the city for over ten days.