NewDelhi: On medical grounds, the Supreme Court of India has granted bail to self-styled godman Asaram Bapu on an interim basis till 31 March. The rape convict, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2013, will be released from Jodhpur Central Gaol, where he was lodged for more than a decade.
Asaram can be released on strict terms, the court said. The bail period includes that he cannot meet any of his followers and cannot tamper with evidence. Asaram’s lawyers filed multiple bail applications, but the decision comes after some of them complained that his health has deteriorated.
Asaram, a heart patient who had suffered earlier from a heart attack, is being treated at the jail’s medical centre. The court said it will look only at bail on medical grounds and has already rejected a petition to suspend his sentence.
In a parallel case involving Asaram’s son, Narayan Sai, who was convicted of raping the victim’s sister in April 2019, was gaoled for life. Sai remains in custody.
It had earlier lodged the original case in 2013 against Asaram in the Chandkheda police station in Ahmedabad. Asaram, who has been challenging a lower court in Gandhinagar’s decision sentencing him to life imprisonment, was also denied bail by the court.
Asaram’s temporary release comes as the case brings focus to the problems of sexual abuse and the power gap between spiritual leaders and followers in India.
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