CID to verify Swami Nithyananda’s sleaze act chip

A microchip on which the alleged sleaze act of self-styled godman Paramahamsa Nithyananda was recorded, would be tested at a national laboratory, sources in the criminal investigation department (CID) said on Tuesday.

The test would ascertain if the visuals had been manipulated.
The CID had seized the microchip on which the sleaze act was recorded. Nithyananda’s former disciple Karuppa Lenin claimed that he had installed the spy camera to expose the swami’s misdeeds.

Investigators expressed doubt that Lenin had the help of an expert in planting the camera. It has been believed that the camera was concealed in a bottle of room freshner.

“We have to see if the master microchip has the original video or not. It is possible for someone to manipulate the visuals. Once we confirm that the images are original, we will summon all those responsible for recording the act,” the officer said.

The CID, meanwhile, had forwarded the hard disks and computers seized from Nithyananda and his ashram at Bidadi to the forensic science laboratory in Hyderabad.

“Nithyananda had at least half-a-dozen Sim cards with him. We are looking into the contents of his laptop, seized from the swamiji soon after his April 21 arrest at Solan in Himachal Pradesh,” the officer said.

The CID officer hoped that the laptop would provide evidence against the godman.