International law enforcement organisation Interpol has denied that it has issued a Blue Corner notice against Nithyananda, the rape-accused self-styled godman and fugitive who is on the run from Indian police. Two letters issued by Interpol’s General Secretariat, contradict claims made by Gujarat police that such a notice had been issued by them to collect additional information about Nithyananda's identity, location or activities in relation to alleged crimes.
TNM has two Interpol letters obtained by London-based journalist Poonam Joshi, which stated, “Nithyananda, also known as Swami Arunachalam Sri Nithyananda, is not subject to an Interpol Notice or diffusion as of November 2022.” This means that Interpol has not issued an international arrest warrant or alert for Nithyananda and that he is not currently wanted by Interpol.
The letters, one dated February 26, 2021, and the other dated November 22, 2022, were issued by the General Secretariat of Interpol. On January 22, 2020, PTI reported that Interpol had issued a Blue Corner notice against Nithyananda. “Interpol issued the Blue Corner notice against the controversial godman this month,” then Deputy Superintendent of Police, Ahmedabad (Rural) KT Kamariya had reportedly said.
A Blue Corner notice is a type of notice issued by Interpol to collect additional information from its member countries about a person's identity, location or activities in relation to a crime. It is one of the seven types of notices that Interpol issues.
Two letters issued by Interpol’s General Secretariat
When TNM reached out to Kamariya who is currently DySP of Gujarat State Monitoring Cell, he claimed that a Blue Corner notice was issued but was retracted for the issuance of a Red Corner notice against Nithyananda.
The Gujarat Police, in November 2019, had sent a request to the Central Bureau of Investigation, the nodal body for Interpol matters in India, seeking a Blue Corner notice against Nithyananda. Interpol has now clarified that they have not issued a Blue Corner notice against Nithyananda. The Ministry of External Affairs in December 2019, had said that they had cancelled Nithyananda's passport and also "sensitised" all its foreign missions and posts to keep track of his movements.
Nithyananda, also known as Nithyananda Paramashivam, is a self-styled godman, on the run from Indian authorities for various crimes. He founded the Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam, an organisation that claims to promote spiritual growth and enlightenment. He is facing trial on multiple charges including rape, unnatural sex, cheating, criminal abetment, and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code (IPC). He has been accused of these crimes by multiple survivors, including a young woman who alleged that he raped her over five years under the guise of spiritual initiation, and another woman who died in his ashram after being accused of stealing pen drives and being physically abused. In 2019, police in Gujarat raided one of his ashrams and freed three minor children who had been abused, leading to a manhunt for the godman.