Sunsari, November 29

Police have taken under control Krishnadas Giri, a spiritual guru popularly known as Siddhababa, for allegedly raping one of his female followers.

Police, however, have not been able to lock him up, as he is “undergoing treatment” in a hospital.

Giri admitted himself to Biratnagar-based Birat Nursing Home today on the pretext of chest infection and experiencing symptoms of kidney stone upon getting a wind of impending arrest, according to Superintendent of Police Yagya Binod Pokharel of Sunsari District Police Office.

“He’s under our surveillance. We’ll transfer him to police custody after he is discharged from the nursing home,” said Pokharel.

Police had taken Giri under control after Sunsari District Court today issued an arrest warrant against Giri, who is based in Chatara of Sunsari’s Barahachhetra Municipality.

According to a court staffer Ishwor Bhandari, the warrant was issued over the charge that Giri had raped one of his followers in his ashram earlier. The victim had filed an FIR with the police a few days back, alleging that she was summoned by the godman to his ashram on October 21 and raped.

The victim first went to Kathmandu Metropolitan Police to file an FIR, but police refused to register one. She then approached the Central Investigation Bureau. CIB sent her FIR to Sunsari police on Tuesday after conducting a health checkup. It was, however, only yesterday that Sunsari police registered an FIR and sought permission from the court to arrest the godman.

“We’re investigating the incident,” said SP Pokharel.

Giri earned fame by shutting himself up in a box for nine days to meditate without food or water in Sunsari’s Chatara. He is also said to have repeated such a feat in Pokhara as well later.

Giri has allegedly encroached land of Koshi Project in Chatara and has built two structures there with a capacity of housing 500 persons without the mandatory design pass. Besides, Giri was also dragged into controversy for keeping dual citizenship certificates issued from different places.

Regarding the land encroachment and citizenship fraud, a complaint has been filed with Sunsari District Administration Office. According to sources, Giri had procured citizenship certificates from Sunsari and Solukhumbu by presenting different dates of birth. While the citizenship certificate (registered with the number 2227/595) obtained from Solukhumbu is in the name of Krishna Bahadur Giri with date of birth mentioned as 25 November 1973, the other procured from Sunsari and registered with number 069004/132808 has been issued in the name of Shree Baishnav Krishnadas with 3 March 1975 as his birthday.