The representatives of Nithyananda's 'Kailasa' at the UN meet last month.
The representatives of controversial godman Nithyananda's 'Kailasa' country shocked the world when they spoke at a meeting of a United Nations committee. The all-women delegation participated in discussions on "equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems" at United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) meeting in Geneva on February 24, and the photos of the event were posted by Nithyananda on his Twitter handle. During the discussions, they said Nithyananda is being persecuted across the world and demanded protection for the "supreme pontiff of Hinduism". However, the video of the event led to some angry reactions from people across the world.
They questioned how the representatives of a person who has several cases against him in India, including rape and sexual assault, were allowed to participate in the high-profile event. To understand this, we need to take a look at UN rules.
According to CESCR website, it is a body of 18 independent experts that monitors implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights by its states parties.
The UN body mentions that all the member states are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how economic, social and cultural rights are being implemented. And if any member state, organisation or even an individual feel that their rights under the Covenant have been violated, they can approach the CESCR. It is under this rule that 'United States if Kailasa' representatives approached the UN committee and spoke during the discussion.
It is to be noted that 'United States of Kailasa' is not among the 193 countries recognised by the UN.
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Alternatively, the committee may also, under certain circumstances, undertake inquiries on grave or systematic violations of any of the economic, social and cultural rights set forth in the Covenant, and consider inter-state complaints, the website further said.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights mentions mechanisms under which incidents of human rights violations can be reported and issues addressed. They are divided in two categories: Treaty-based and charter-based. The CESCR comes under treaty-based mechanism.
Ahead of the discussion on February 24, the UN committee's website carried a link for people and organisations to register and put forward their complaints. 'Kaisala' representative Vijayapriya Nithyananda made use of this provision and asked the UN body what measures can be taken ''at national and international levels'' to stop the self-styled godman's persecution.
After the video of the speech of Nithyananda's representative went viral, social media users slammed the UN Body questioning if this is a joke.
"Nonsense at its zenith!" commented one user. "UN is a joke," tweeted another.
"How are these cons allowed? Why isn't India raising objection?" a third user asked.
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A United Nations official, meanwhile, told the BBC that they will ignore the statements made by the representatives of the fictional country. The official also called their submissions "irrelevant" and "tangential" to the issues being discussed.
Nithyananda left India years ago after facing several cases, including rape and sexual assault. He has denied all the allegations against him.
After leaving India, he founded 'Kailasa' in 2019 on an island off the coast of Ecuador. The country is named after a mountain in the Himalayas that is considered the abode of Lord Shiva.