Supreme Court Grants Interim Bail To Asaram Bapu In Rape Case On Medical Grounds, Condition To Not Meet Followers

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (7 January) granted interim bail to Asumal Harpalani, popularly known as Asaram Bapu, on medical grounds until 31 March in connection with a 2013 rape case, news agency PTI reported.

The bench, while granting the bail, directed that the 86-year-old Asaram should not meet his followers during the interim release. According to the court, Asaram suffers from several age-related health conditions, including a heart ailment.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had sought the Gujarat government’s response to Asaram’s plea for suspension of the life sentence awarded to him by a Gandhinagar court in 2023. However, the top court clarified that it would only consider the plea on medical grounds, PTI noted.

In August last year, the Gujarat High Court rejected Asaram’s plea for suspension of his sentence, stating that there was no basis to grant such relief.

Asaram has been in jail since 31 August 2013, following charges of raping a 16-year-old girl at his Jodhpur ashram. A special SC/ST court in Jodhpur convicted him under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

In February 2023, a Gandhinagar Sessions Court sentenced Asaram to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of raping a woman disciple from Surat multiple times between 2001 and 2006 at his Motera ashram near Ahmedabad.

Before his conviction, Asaram was a prominent religious guru with a significant following. He established his first ashram in the 1970s on the banks of the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad and went on to build a multi-crore business empire comprising spiritual literature and various products.