The Chennai Police registered an FIR on 31 July 2011 against Mr. Saxena and Mr. Iyappan of Sun TV Network, Nakkheeran Gopal and Kamraj, Lenin Karuppan, his brother Kumar, his co-conspirators Aarthi Rao, advocate Sridhar and Prasanna Kumar, under various sections including 341, 342,392, 323, 420 & 506 (ii) IPC including extortion, criminal conspiracy and criminal intimidation followign a complaint by Sri Nithya Atmaprabhananda, a disciple of Nithyananda.
All of the accused are said to be involved in the sordid conspiracy against Paramahamsa Nithyananda, involving the fabrication and distribution of a morphed videotape allegedly featuring Nithyananda with actress Smt. Ranjita on 2nd March last year. The case got transferred to the CB CID Chennai police for further investigation. As investigation intensified, the accused applied for anticipatory bail one after another before the Principal Sessions Judge, Chennai. Nakkheeran Gopal and Kamraj pleaded for an anticipatory bail even before an FIR was registered which the Judge adjourned to a further date of hearing. They pleaded not to be arrested until then, but were refused an order to that effect. Once the FIR was filed, they pleaded anticipatory bail again which they were allowed on stringent grounds of surrendering their passports and appearing before the CID officials twice a week to sign on the attendance register and mark their presence. Advocate Sridhar was also granted anticipatory bail with the same stringent conditions purely on the medical grounds that he claimed.
SUN TV COO Saxena and his assistant Iyappan who are already in Puzhal prison in connection with another crime, were refused anticipatory bail, following which the CID officials produced them before the Magistrate court in Saidapet, where they got remanded back to judicial custody for 15 days. Lenin’s co-conspirator Prasanna Kumar’s anticipatory bail petition was rejected in the court of the Principal Session judge following which he filed for an anticipatory bail at the Chennai High Court which was again rejected.
Meanwhile Lenin Karuppan accused number 2, and his brother Kumar accused No.6, filed for an anticipatory bail petition at the court of the Prinicipal Sessions Judge, the next hearing for which stands adjourned to coming Monday. The Tamil Nadu CB-CID is also investigating a complaint lodged by actress Ranjitha, devotee of Paramahamsa Nithyananda, against Sun TV network, Dinakaran Tamil Daily and Lenin Karuppan under the relevant provisions of law for blackmail, criminal intimidation, extortion and causing mischief, and all other relevant provisions of law that have been violated by the accused in connection with the release of the morphed video on 2 March 2010.
Nakkheeran Gopal and Kamraj pleaded for anticipatory bail before the Principal Sessions judge even before an FIR has been registered in the case. The petition was promptly closed. Another case the Tamil Nadu CB_CID is investigating is the complaint lodged by Sri Nithya Sarvananda, devotee of Nithyananda against Sun TV network, for instigating pure vandalism on all Nithyananda’s ashrams and centers in various places in Tamil Nadu following the release of the morphed video on the night of 2 March 2010 on Sun TV network. Paid goons were employed who beat and burnt the Nithyananda ashrams, brought down banners and tore them apart, and attacked the ashramites.
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