Poornananda Swamy of Ramananda Gnanananda ashram is also facing trial in a 2012 rape case based on a complaint by another minor girl.
Published Jun 28, 2023 | 2:06 AM ⚊ Updated Jun 28, 2023 | 2:06 AM
Ramananda Gnanananda ashram seer Poornanda Swamy being taken into custody on 19 June. (Supplied)
A Visakhapatnam court has ordered a potency test and identification of the Ramananda Gnanananda ashram seer Poornananda Swamy, who is accused of repeatedly sexually abusing and raping a 15-year-old girl.
The seer, who was arrested by the Visakhapatnam Disha Police, is currently in police remand.
The potency test of Poornananda is likely to take place on Thursday, 29 June, at the King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam, an officer of the Disha police told South First.
The 64-year-old seer was arrested on 19 June after the victim, an orphan, managed to flee the Venkoji Nagar in the MVP Colony area of the city on 13 June and boarded Tirumala Express.
She filed a zero FIR in Vijayawada with the help of a fellow female passenger, who with the help of the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO) produced the girl in front of the Child Welfare Committee
A potency test is a medical examination that determines whether a person — the accused in this case — is capable of engaging in sexual acts, and whether the individual could have committed the offence he has been charged with.
It is a due procedure in the rape and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act case, said the cops.
The first step of the potency test includes the development of male genitalia while the sexual characteristics confirm the person’s maturity in the second step.
Based on the results of these steps, several tests can be done using methods such as manual stimulation, X-Ray, and ultrasound.
Dr Satish KV, Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru, said a physical exam alone could not completely confirm that the person could be potent in all situations.
“In an aspect like fear, anxiety and other such things need to be taken into consideration. All the endocrinology, urology, and psychiatric involvements have to be normal at that time. Male genital organs may react differently to varying situations. A man may get an erection to one woman of his interest and not to a woman of his disinterest,” he told South First.
He added that the history of the person was also a crucial aspect.
“Based on the history, it is determined whether the person has done the same thing in the past, as even an impotent person can become potent by taking drugs. Forensic science needs to check that,” he said.
Self-styled godmen Nithyananda and Asaram — both accused of rape — also underwent potency tests in 2014 and 2013, respectively.
Two common tests conducted under the potency examination are semen analysis, where the fertility of the accused is examined, and penile doppler ultrasound, in which the blood flow into the penis is checked.
A person can have an erection only when blood flows into the penis and does not flow out of it.
Of the two victims who complained against Poornananda, the first is at a children’s home in Vijayawada, whereas the second is undergoing treatment at King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam, the police said.
The Disha police registered a case under Section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code, and Sections 505 and 506 of the POCSO Act against the seer.
Interestingly, Poornananda is also facing trial in a 2012 rape case based on a complaint by another minor girl.
The result of potency test reports in that case reportedly indicated that the seer was impotent.
However, his criminal past is allegedly not limited to abuse. “There are many cases registered against him, including land dispute cases. A total of 9.5 acres of land of the ashram is also under dispute,” the police said.
Proclaiming his innocence, Poornananda reportedly told the police that the cases against him were motivated by those trying to grab the ashram land.
