The Supreme Court on Thursday made it clear to Swami Nithyananda that he should undergo the medical test and face trial in the ‘rape case’ registered against him in a court in Bangalore.
A Bench of Justices Ms. Ranjana Desai and N.V. Ramana, reserved verdict on Nithyananda’s appeal challenging a Karnataka High Court order refusing to stay the trial court’s direction that he should take the test.
The Bench, after hearing senior counsel Mohan Parasaran and C.V. Nagesh appearing for Nithyananda, senior counsel M.N. Rao and counsel Aristotle for Karnataka expressed dissatisfaction over the manner in which the investigation and trial progressed in the case. Justice Desai told Mr. Rao that there was enough suspicion that the State investigating agency was fighting a ‘shadow box’ in merely filing a chargesheet without proper investigation and not appointing a proper public prosecutor to conduct the case.
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When Mr. Mohan Prasaran said the petitioner should not be compelled to undergo second medical test, the Bench observed that such medical examinations had become necessary in view of growing rape cases. Justice Desai said “If the police can’t take blood or hair sample, entire investigation can fall flat. In rape cases, all these tests are done. These tests are becoming necessary day after day in view of rising number of rape cases. In this situation can we say that potency tests should not be done?”
Mr. Nagesh said a false case was foisted on the accused, which included Nithayanda’s personal assistants because of media propaganda as part of a conspiracy against the spiritual leader to involve him in a scandal.