SC dismisses plea of Nithyananda against potency test

New Delhi, Sep 3: Self-proclaimed godman Nithyananda will have to undergo potency test in a 2010 rape case with the Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissing his plea challenging the Karnataka High Court's order directing him to take the medical test.

A bench headed by Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai refused to give any relief to Nithyananda.

The bench while hearing the case had on August 20 questioned him for his reluctance to undergo the test, saying such examinations are becoming necessary day-by-day in view of rise in rape cases.

The bench had also said that there is no reason why an accused in a rape case should not be subjected to potency test and had questioned the police for delay in conducting the test in the 2010 case.

The apex court had on August 21 reserved its verdict on Nithyananda's plea.

Karnataka High Court had on August 1 stayed the non-bailable arrest warrant issued by a Ramanagaram court against Nithyananda and four of his followers in connection with the case.

The high court had directed Nithyananda to present himself before the investigating officer for the medical test and also to appear before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Ramanagaram, on August 18.

It had passed the order on the petitions filed by Nithyananda and his followers questioning the July 28 order of the CJM.

They had claimed that the CJM was not justified in issuing the non-bailable arrest warrant against them as the high court in its July 16 order did not direct them to be present before the CJM on July 28 but it was the date given for the trial court to commence hearing in the rape case, which was pending for four years.

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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