Karnataka HC permits Russian woman, kids found in Gokarna cave to return home

The Karnataka High Court has permitted the Russian woman and her two children, who were found living in a cave in the hilly forests of Gokarna in Karnataka, to be sent back to their country. Justice BM Shyam Prasad issued the order after taking into account the wishes of the woman, Nina Kutina.

It was in July that patrolling police officers noticed clothes drying outside a cave near the Ramateertha hill area of the coastal pilgrimage town in Uttara Kannada district of the state. Since trekking is not allowed in that zone, they sensed something unusual.

Also read: My son's ashes taken away, says Russian woman found in Gokarna cave

The policemen then entered the cave and saw a little child approaching them. Shocked to see all these men, the child promptly ran back inside. Upon further investigation, the officers discovered Nina (40) living inside with her two daughters, Prema, aged six, and Ama, four.

Woman teaching daughter painting in cave

Inside the cave, which was quite dark, Nina was found teaching Prema to paint in the faint light of a small lamp – a sight that left even the police startled.

Also read: Russian woman, daughters found in Gokarna cave to be deported

When asked, Nina said she chose to live in the cave for spiritual peace. They were living in such conditions without basic amenities for a few weeks before the police found them. Nina came to India in 2017 on a business visa and stayed back even after it expired. She has her two daughters, the younger of whom was born in India, with her former partner Shlomo Goldstein, an Israeli national.

Goldstein, who has expressed concerns over the two children and sought their shared custody, said Nina was upset after her 21-year-old son died in a road accident in India in October 2024. He also filed a police complaint in December last year saying Nina and the daughters had gone missing.

Also read: Russian woman not an anomaly; foreigners often live in Gokarna caves

Russian family sent to detention centre

The police rescued Nina and her kids, and they were sent to a foreigners’ detention centre in Tumakuru. Goldstein, meanwhile, moved the high court, against the children's repatriation to Russia. According to him, their welfare and rights must be considered. The court stayed the repatriation initially but accommodated the mother’s application later, after careful examination, focusing on the children’s best interests.

The case witnessed a turning point when Ama was granted Russian citizenship and emergency travel documents by Moscow. The court took a humane approach in the matter, respecting Nina’s wishes to return to her country and prioritizing her children’s well-being. It also asked the central government to provide necessary travel documents for both the mother and the minors.

Also read: Karnataka: Ex-husband seeks shared custody after Russian woman, kids found in Gokarna cave

While foreign tourists meditating and staying temporarily in caves for varying reasons — overstaying visas to avoiding hotel norms or financial problems — is not new in Gokarna, the case of Nina and her daughters made headlines for days.

(The story was first published in The Federal Karnataka)