Trying to Trace 2 Sisters ‘Detained’ by Nithyananda: Gujarat Cops

A plea has been filed by the parents who claimed their daughters were being detained and kept in illegal confinement

Both daughters have uploaded videos on social media claiming that as adults, they choose to remain with the ashram.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

The Gujarat police on Friday, 22 November, said they have approached the immigration department with passport details of a teen and her 21-year-old sister after their parents alleged the two were "detained" and kept in "illegal confinement" at self-styled godman Nithyananda's ashram, officials said.

Lopamudra Sharma (21) and Nandhitha Janardhana (18), daughters of Janardhana Sharma, a former disciple of Nithyananda, have, however, contacted the police several times through video messaging service claiming they were fine and did not want to meet their parents.

Police officials said they are trying to locate the sisters so that they could be produced before the Gujarat High Court on 26 November as per its order on a 'habeas corpus' plea.

The plea has been filed by the parents who claimed their daughters were being detained and kept in illegal confinement.

The High Court had, on Monday, 18 November directed the police to either produce the 'corpus' of the two daughters, or file action taken report, on the next hearing which is scheduled for 26 November.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (Ahmedabad Rural) KT Kamariya told reporters,

“A cyber team has been formed which is keeping a watch on the videos being released by the two women. They are using proxy network, so it is not possible to trace their location.Once we manage to trace the location, we will take action. Meanwhile, we have given their passport details to the immigration department to find out if they have gone abroad. So far we have no clue where they are, in India or abroad”

He added the police were finding it hard to track down Nithyananda as his passport expired in September last year, but they will take action against him by contacting Karnataka police.

In a fresh video released on Friday, the sisters claimed they were being "threatened" by their father, who is using them as a "weapon" against Nithyananda; Nandhitha said,

“Janardhana is continuously threatening. It was a shock for me because Swamiji has been a father for all six of us (family), because he has taken care of us all. Not just that, for the amount of fraud that Janardhana has done in the entire Sangha, I realise that Janardhana is using me as a weapon against Swamiji,”

The elder daughter called for an open debate on the issue.

An FIR was registered on Tuesday, 19 November against Nithyananda on the charges of alleged kidnapping and wrongful confinement of children to make them collect donations from followers to run his ashram in Ahmedabad in Gujarat.

Two of his disciples, Pranpriya and Priyatatva, were arrested on Tuesday on charges of kidnapping, assault, illegal confinement among others and were remanded in police custody for five days, Kamariya said.