Stoic swami stonewalls sleuths
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BLISS INTERRUPTED
The criminal
investigation
department started
questioning
Nithyananda, but the
tainted godman
preferred to remain
stoic and
philosophical. The
investigators said
the swami will soon
open up and start
singing. Meanwhile,
the high court
adjourned a petition
he had filed to
May 28, report
MK Madhusoodan
and Odeal D'Souza
FALL FROM GRACE: CID officers hope Nithyananda will speak up once he understands the gravity of charges slapped on him
Disgraced Swami Nithyananda
Paramahamsa turned stoic and
philosophical as the Criminal
Investigation Department com-
menced grilling him at its head-
quarters here on Friday.
The self-styled godman stonewalled the questions shot at him. "Time will heal everything," he reportedly told his inter-rogators.
"He is not replying to our questions. We
hope he will answer the questions in
course of time," a CID officer said.
Nithyananda, alias Rajashekara, report-edly questioned the veracity of a sleaze video tape, which showed a man frolicking with an actress. The man in the video was widely believed to be the swami.
Incidentally, this was the first time that the 32-year-old swami denied his involve-ment in the telecast sexual act. His ashram had earlier termed the visuals as morphed.
"We will be playing the CD to him, so that he would understand the gravity of
"We will be playing the
same CD to him, so
that he would
understand the gravity
of the case. His health
condition is good."
INVESTIGATING OFFICER CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION DEPARTMENT
the case. His health condition is good ac-cording to the doctors of Ramanagara Government Hospital," the officer said. Only senior officers were interrogating the swami.
The swami was provided a diet of dry fruit and idlis.
Meanwhile, the high court of Karnata-ka, adjourned the hearing on a writ peti-tion by Nithyananda to May 28.
The petition was filed to quash the first information report filed by the Bidadi po-lice. Nithyananda had also sought a stay on all legal proceedings against him.
The swami's counsel, Chandramouli, re-quested the court to shift the case to a va-cation bench. Justice Arali Nagraj ob-served that there was no such practice and adjourned the case to May 28.
The court, however, noted that the peti-tioner was in police custody and if there was any urgency in the matter, the case may be posted before the vacation bench.
In a related development, the superin-tendent of police (CID) KN Yogappa sub-mitted the remand order issued by the Ra-managara district magistrate before the high court. The court had, on Wednesday, directed the investing officer to submit the order, along with the details of the arrest.
According to a previous order by the lower court, Yogappa had obtained a search warrant on April 3, and the CID raided the swami's ashram at Bidadi. On the April 22, in another search, 22 comput-er hard disks and evidence were collected from the ashram.
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