Pramesh S Jain
The RR Nagar police on Wednesday arrested a city based yoga teacher and secretary for the state yoga sports association for sexually assaulting a minor student multiple times assuring placement and foreign trips .
The accused M Niranjana Murthy,55,the founder and director of Sunshine The Yoga Zone in RR Nagar was booked under POCSO. Further investigation are on to ascertain whether he had attempted on other women students .
Based on the complaint by the victim who was around 17 years,Murthy has been booked under Sections 69 (sexual intercourse by employing deceitful means, etc) and 75(2) (sexual harassment) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 12 (punishment for sexual harassment) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.
According to the police,the investigation initiated on August 30 when the victim,filed a complaint.
She was 17 when the alleged offence occurred and told the police that she had known Murthy since 2019,as he was the secretary-general of the Karnataka Yogasana Sports Association (KYSA).
From 2021,she has been participating in yoga competitions abroad .
She alleged that in 2023,she went with Murthy to participate in one such competition in Thailand,where he sexually assaulted her.She subsequently quit participating and stopped going to the yoga centre,the FIR noted.
She claimed that she joined the Sunshine The Yoga Zone in 2024,run by the accused and was yet again sexually harassed by Murthy.
The FIR said that the survivor was sexually assaulted by Murthy in August 2025 at the institute after he promised her a medal and placement.
She alleged that Murthy yet again attempted to sexually assault her on August 22 by promising a state-level placement.Unable to bear the torture and harassment, the victim informed her family and filed a complaint..
The accused is well known person in the yoga field having colour.He has a PhD in Yoga and led the national team 12 times.
He has also received a few awards,including the Life Achievement Award by the Government of Karnataka, the website noted.
