How did Nithyananda's 'nation' Kailasa, a fictional country, reach UN? Clarifies 'persecuted by India' remark, blames anti-Hindus
Chandigarh, March 3
Self-proclaimed godman Nithyananda– who claimed to be “the permanent ambassador of (so-called) the United States of Kailasa” has clarified its “persecuted by India” remark at the UN.
“I would like to clarify that I stated that the SPH Bhagavan Nithyananda Paramashivam is persecuted in his birthplace by certain anti-Hindu elements. The United States of KAILASA holds India in high regard and respects India as its Gurupeedam. Thank you Ma Vijayapriya Nithyananda”.
I would like to clarify that I stated that the SPH Bhagavan Nithyananda Paramashivam is persecuted in his birthplace by certain anti-Hindu elements.
The United States of KAILASA holds India in high regard and respects India as its Gurupeedam.
Thank you
Ma Vijayapriya Nithyananda pic.twitter.com/s5TYGJtSnM— KAILASA’s SPH Nithyananda (@SriNithyananda) March 2, 2023
Vijayapriya Nithyananda can be seen making her intervention in videos from the event and has triggered questions over the group’s involvement at sessions addressed by the likes of former Australian prime minister Julia Gillard and other human rights experts.
Nithyananda is wanted in India on several charges of rape and sexual assault – allegations he denies. He claims to have founded the “United States of Kailasa (USK)” in 2019 and according to its website, counts “two billion practising Hindus” among its population.
Apply Now for E-Citizenship of United States of KAILASAhttps://t.co/zPWSIaOVxl#Kailasa #USK #Citizen pic.twitter.com/F9YNxZZgYd
— KAILASA’s SPH Nithyananda (@SriNithyananda) March 1, 2023
The UN human rights office on Thursday said any submissions made by representatives of the so-called “United States of Kailasa (USK)”, founded by Indian fugitive Nithyananda, at its public meetings in Geneva last week were “irrelevant” and will not be considered in the final outcome drafts.
Confirming the participation of the so-called “USK representatives” at two of its public meetings – registration to which was open to everyone, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), however, said they were prevented from distributing promotional material and their “tangential” speech was not taken into consideration.
The comments by the OHCHR spokesperson came even as videos and images showing a USK representative speaking on behalf of the fictional state on “indigenous rights and sustainable development” at one of the events went viral on social media. The two events were held on February 22 and 24.
THE KAILASA DELEGATION AT THE 84TH SESSION INCLUDED:
1. KAILASA’S PERMANENT AMBASSADOR TO THE UN, HER EXCELLENCY MA VIJAYAPRIYA NITHYANANDA
2. HEAD OF KAILASA UNITED KINGDOM – HER EXCELLENCY MA NITHYA ATMADAYANANDA
3. HEAD OF KAILASA SLOVENIA – H.E. MA PRIYAPREMA NITHYANANDA pic.twitter.com/MuXTmLEBdL— KAILASA’s SPH Nithyananda (@SriNithyananda) February 28, 2023
“Registration for such public events is open to NGOs and the general public. Anyone can submit information to the treaty bodies, who will use their judgment to determine the credibility of the submissions received,” the OHCHR spokesperson said when asked about their participation.
“On 24 February, at CESCR’s general discussion, when the floor was opened to the public, a USK representative spoke briefly. As the focus of the statement was tangential to the topic at hand, it will not be taken into consideration by the Committee in the formulation of the General Comment,” the spokesperson added.
There was no immediate comment from India’s permanent mission in Geneva.
However, India’s former Permanent Representative at UN, T S Tirumurti, described it as a “complete abuse” of UN procedures.
“It’s a complete abuse of UN procedures to have representatives of an organisation run by a fugitive from law address the UN as NGOs or otherwise. India has been consistent in calling for a robust process to ensure that only credible NGOs get accredited. However, this call has not been heeded to,” he said.
“While NGOs continue to have an important say in a range of global issues, we need to preserve the integrity of the UN, which is a member State driven organisation,” the former diplomat added.
With PTI inputs
