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Religious leader Nityananda, aides charged with rape
Police in Karnataka have filed a chargesheet against controversial religious leader Nityananda and four associates for rape and unnatural sex.
Police in Karnataka have filed a chargesheet against controversial religious leader Nityananda and four associates for rape and unnatural sex.
The associates are Nithya Bhaktananda, Nithya Sachidananda, Nithya Sadananda and Maa Sachidananda alias Ragini, the Crime Investigation Department said in a statement here on Monday.
The statement said the 430-page chargesheet was filed in a court in Ramanagara, near Bangalore, on Nov 27.
Nityananda, hailing from Tamil Nadu, has a sprawling ashram in Ramanagara district's Bidadi area, about 30 km from Bangalore.
He face charges of rape, unnatural sex, cheating, criminal conspiracy and criminal intimidation.
Bhaktananda has been charged with harbouring an offender and criminal conspiracy.
Sachidananda, Sadananda and Maa Sachidananda face charges of assisting Nityananda in committing rape and unnatural sex.
Nityananda was arrested by Karnataka police near Solan in Himachal Pradesh on April 21. He had fled there from his Bidadi Ashram after Tamil TV channels telecast video clippings claiming they showed him in sexual acts with a film actor.
