- By Abhishek Sheoran
- Tue, 07 Jan 2025 01:33 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Self-styled godman Asaram Bapu has been granted an interim bail by the Supreme Court on Tuesday in a 2013 rape case. The top court granted him relief on medical grounds till March 31. However, a bench of Justices M M Sundresh and Rajesh Bindal categorically said Asaram Bapu could not meet his followers after release.
The apex court noted that the 86-year-old preacher was suffering from age-related ailments, including heart disease. Besides, the bench has sought a response from the Gujarat government on Asaram’s pleas seeking suspension of his life sentence awarded by a Gandhinagar court in 2023.
The SC said it would only examine the issue on medical grounds. On August 29, 2024, the Gujarat High Court rejected Asaram's plea seeking the suspension and found no case to grant him the reprieve. Thereafter, Asaram had moved to the top court seeking release from jail.
Asaram's bail came days after he returned to Jodhpur jail on Wednesday after a 17-day parole. Advocate Yaspali Singh Rajpurohit, representing Asaram, confirmed his compliance with the High Court’s directive. “The High Court had issued an order stating that Asaram had to return to jail before January 2, otherwise it would be considered contempt of court. He was brought back to the Jodhpur jail today itself,” Rajpurohit told media.
The trial court in January, 2023, convicted Asaram in the 2013 case, filed by a woman who lived in his ashram near Gandhinagar when the alleged crime took place. The girl had reported that she was called to Asaram's ashram near Jodhpur and assaulted by him on the night of August 15, 2013.