More trouble is brewing for self-styled godman Swami Nityananda with the Karnataka government ordering a probe into the land held by him at Bidadi, 40 km away from Bangalore.
Karnataka Home Minister Dr V S Acharya announced on the floor of the Karnataka legislative assembly that the land on which the ashram stands is basically government land and hence a probe must be ordered into it.
Acharya said the ashram land is meant for cattle grazing -- and not for any other purpose. He said the deputy commissioner would conduct an enquiry. If violations are found, he said, regarding the grant, then the government will take steps to take the land back. Meanwhile, the forest department conducted a raid at the ashram and seized 2 kg of sandalwood.
The Karnataka police have dispatched two teams in search of the self styled godman.
Police sources in Bengaluru told rediff.com that there is a strong suspicion that godman could be hiding out at a mutt in Mysore. A police team was dispatched to search for the godman in Mysore. So far the teams have not been able to find anything but the search is still on.
The police say that in all probability he may be in Mysore. The police team has questioned several persons in connection with the swami.
Another team has been sent to the Thiruvannamalai ashram to gather more information about the godman. He has his biggest base in this ashram. The police say that though Nithyananda may not be in the ashram, they will be able to gather information regarding his whereabouts.