Swami Nithyananda, a rape accused and fugitive from India, figured in news debates and memes on social media on Monday as a so-called representative of a his fictional country ‘United States of Kailasa’ called him as a ‘persecuted’ man at the 19th United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Geneva, Switzerland. His representative Vijayapriya Nithyananda, clad in similar attire and jewelry as worn by the fugitive, also called him “Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism”.
“Kailasa is the first sovereign state for Hindus, established by the Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism, Nithyanand Paramashivam, who is reviving the enlightened Hindu civilisation and its 10,000 indigenous traditions of Hinduism, including the Adi Shaivite indigenous agricultural tribes for which the supreme pontiff of Hinduism is the leader as well,” Vijayapriya said, in a video of which has been posted on the United Nations website.
The DFRAC ran a quick fact check of the above and other claims made by Nithyananada and the website linked to him in the recent past.
- Announced a misleading headline claiming that “The United States of America recognises the United States of Kailasa and signs a bilateral agreement.” The claim was made on December 28, 2022 and still flashes a leading headline on the homepage of the supposedly official website of the Kailasa or Shri Kailasa.
Fact Check:
When the DFRAC team went through the report, it merely mentioned that Shrikailasa has signed a protocol bilateral agreement with the City of Newark, New Jersey, not the United States of America. Hence, the headline is completely misleading.
Furthermore, no media report on recognition of Kailasa was available in the US media or on the websites of various departments of the United States of America.
- Nithyananda’s website spreads a gamut of misinformation about the Hindu religion and claims him to be the head of 21 ancient indigenous Kingdoms of Hinduism. It also confers the title of Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism on him. The portal also claims that he is out to protect Hindus from persecution.
Fact Check-
According to Pew Research Centre, the overwhelming majority of Hindus (94%) live in one country, India. The largest populations of Hindus outside India are in Nepal (2% of all Hindus) and Bangladesh (1%). Overall, an estimated 60% of Southern Asia’s total population is Hindu. So Hinduism is definitely not on the brink of extinction. In 2023, World Population review still supports the fact that Hinduism is the third largest religion in the world. ‘The Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism’ is not an official or recognised title, because Hinduism does not have the position of pontiffs, and its kingdoms and dynasties no longer exist.
- He claims to rule Hinduism’s oldest governing body.
Fact Check:
Hinduism has no central doctrinal authority. It includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophet(s) nor any binding holy book (although there are sacred texts) (Source: Wikipedia).
4. Self-claimed representatives of Kailasa snaked their way into a meeting held by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Geneva, thus misleading the public into thinking that it has officially been recognised and accepted by the UN.
Fact Check:
A report by IANS makes clear how even weirdos end up addressing UN sessions: ‘The UN human rights outfits in Geneva are very generous in allowing people to come in and speak at open sessions of their meetings, often drawing charlatans and dubious organisations who make weird claims and the organisations’ open procedures allow them to submit presentations that are included in their archives, which make it seem official.’
