Discharge plea: Nithyananda and his associates stir High Court

Bengaluru: So called Godman Swami Nithyananda and five of his partners on Wednesday moved the High Court of Karnataka challenging the rejection of his release appeal to by the Ramanagaram court in an eight-year-old criminal case.

Justice R B Budihal was hearing an amendment appeal to be documented by Nithyananda and his associates looking for bearings to release them from the criminal procedures on the ground that there is no concrete material with the arraignment to outline charges against them.

A case, under Sections 295 An (offending religious conviction), 420 (cheating), 376 (assault), 377 (unnatural sex), 506 (I) (criminal Intimidation) and 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, was enrolled against 44-year-old Nithyananda in 2010 by Ramanagaram police after the case was exchanged to them.

On December 2017, Supreme Court had guided the Ramanagaram sessions court to simply ahead and outline charges against Nithyananda and lead an expedient trial.

The court dismissed the issue for hearing to March 2.