Nithyananda entity sued for fraud in US

Federal law commonly used against the American mafia invoked against Foundation

About 30 NRIs recently filed in the superior court in San Bernardino county of California a criminal case against a Oklahoma-based non-profit organisation, Nithyananda Foundation, and two of its directors, Ma Nithya Sadhananda, alias D Jamunarani, and Siva Vallabhaneni, alias Nithya Sachitananda. The court summons was served on Sachitananda on March 4, but it could not be served on Jamunarani, the wife of Nithyananda’s secretary Sadhananda, alias Dhanasekaran, since she is absconding from the Bidadi ashram near here.

The NRIs have slapped charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations (RICO) Act and other criminal and civil charges involving fraud, conspiracy, breach of contract and unfair business practices.

Under RICO, a person who is a member of an enterprise that has committed any two of 35 crimes—27 federal crimes and eight state crimes—within a 10-year period can be charged with racketeering.

Those found guilty of racketeering can be fined up to $25,000 and sentenced to 20 years in prison per racketeering count. In addition, the racketeer must forfeit all ill-gotten gains and interest in any business gained through a pattern of "racketeering activity."

According to the petition in the San Bernardino court, a copy of which is available with Deccan Herald, Nithyananda has at all times “controlled and operated the foundation as his own personal asset and piggybank”.

The petition alleges that Nithyananda “controls numerous other organisations and transfers monies from one entity to another at will, including monies from the foundation to a company, Nithyananda Export and Import, that was created, operated and is run by Nithyananda’s brother.”

The petition provides a specific example of invoices totalling $550,386.82 from Nithyananda Imports and Exports to Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam Temple and Cultural Centre for statues that were worth less than $100,000.