Swami Nithyananda's 'Fake Country' Kailasa Cons 30 US Cities With ‘Sister-City’ Scam: Report

Over 30 American cities, ranging from Richmond, Virginia to Dayton, Ohio, to Buena Park, Florida, have signed a cultural alliance with the fictitious nation of Kailasa, according to its website.

The self-proclaimed godman and fugitive Nithyananda's "United States of Kailasa" have signed a "cultural partnership" with over 30 American cities, just days after the city of Newark in the US state of New Jersey said it had cancelled a "sister-city" agreement with the fictional country, according to a media report. 

The sister-city agreement between Newark and the fictitious "United States of Kailasa" was signed on January 12, this year, at City Hall in Newark.

Nityananda, whose mind-bending spiritual homilies covered in a sheen of pseudo-science has garnered a lot of attention on social media, claims to have established the "United States of Kailasa" in 2019.

According to its website, over 30 American cities have forged a cultural alliance with the fictitious nation of Kailasa, ranging from Richmond, Virginia to Dayton, Ohio, to Buena Park, Florida.

A report on Fox News on Thursday stated that "we are finding out the supreme fake pontiff" has a "long list of cities that he's duped".

It stated that it contacted various cities in the United States to gauge their reaction to signing an agreement with the fictitious country.

"And thus far, most of the cities have confirmed that these proclamations are in fact true," according to the report.

"Our proclamations with Kailasa are not an endorsement," Jacksonville, North Carolina told Fox News. They are a response to a request, and we do not check the requested information." Fox News chastised the cities for not "googling" information on the fake nation.

"If someone requests a proclamation, someone receives one. "They'll just call you an exotic Hindu island and name a street after you," the Fox News host said.

According to the report, "people running the federal government" are falling for the false nation as well as mayors and local councils.

According to the phoney guru, Kailasa has received "special congressional recognition" from two members of Congress. Congresswoman Norma Torres of California, who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, is one of them.

"So, the person who decides what we spend our tax dollars on was just fooled by an alleged rapist guru with a fake country," the Fox News host explained.

Republican Troy Balderson of Ohio similarly conferred congressional recognition on "his divine holiness and pontiff of Hinduism." Susan Garofalo, Press Secretary in the City of Newark's Department of Communications, told PTI earlier this month in an email that as soon as "we learned of the circumstances surrounding Kailasa, the City of Newark immediately took action and rescinded the sister city agreement" on January 18.

Last month, USK representatives attended two UN public meetings in Geneva: a general discussion on 'Equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems,' hosted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) on February 22, and a general discussion on the General Comment on economic, social, and cultural rights and sustainable development, hosted by the Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (CESCR) on February 24. (CESCR).

In response to inquiries about the involvement of the United States of Kailasa in UN forums, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) stated that registration for such public events is available to NGOs and the general public.