Asaram Bapu, on April 25, 2018 had been sentenced to life in prison after he was found guilty of raping a teenage girl in his Ashram in 2013.
The teenager had said in her complaint that Asaram had called her to his ashram in Manai area near Jodhpur and raped her on the night of August 15, 2013. The 16-year-old girl from Shahjahanpur in the Northern Indian State of Uttar Pradesh was studying at Asaram’s Ashram in Chhindwara in the Central Indian State of Madhya Pradesh. He was also convicted in a 2002 rape case and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He is also facing a rape case in Surat in Gujarat.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined a bail to the self proclaimed Godman and life convict, Asaram Bapu, he filed a plea seeking temporary suspension of his sentence to pursue medical treatment at an Ayurveda center in Uttarakhand.
A bench of Justices Indira Banerjee, V Ramasubramanian and Bela M Trivedi took not of the response of the Rajasthan government that the convict has been provided requisite treatment and dismissed the plea.
Sorry..It is not an ordinary crime at all. You will get your Ayurveda treatment in jail.
– The Supreme Court observed while dismissing the plea.
The Senior advocate R Basant, appearing for the convict, said “an interim bail for a period of two months can be considered for allowing him to get holistic treatment of his ailments.”
However, the Senior Advocate Manish Singhvi, who represented the state said, “the convict has been getting the possible treatment in jail and urged dismissal of the plea.”
In May, self-styled godman had also contracted coronavirus and was moved to the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital in Jodhpur.
A vacation bench, on June 4, had sought the response of the state government on Asaram’s plea that his sentenced be suspended for two months for undergoing treatment at Prakash Deep Institute of Ayurveda near Haridwar in Uttarakhand. In his plea, Asaram said, “he was an 83-84-year-old man whose medical condition was dire and required immediate holistic medical treatment.” He had presented reports to the Court and submitted that the treatment at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Jodhpur was not sufficient as he had been given blood thinners, thereby making him bleed profusely.
Prior to this, the State Government had told the top court that Asaram was fit and stable but trying to change the venue of his custody on the pretext of medical treatment.
– The State Government.
“The accused/petitioner with ulterior motives has been attempting to change the venue of his custody, under the guise of medical treatment. Such change, with due respect, is an abuse of the process of law, the accused is also deliberately delaying the pending trial at Gandhi Nagar as well as Jodhpur, raising such pleas with mala fides whereas he is stable and fit.”
On 21st May 2021, a Bench of Justice Sandeep Mehta and Justice Devendra Kacchawaha of Rajasthan High Court, had directed the district and jail administration to ensure that Asaram is provided with proper treatment, nutritious diet and a safe environment looking at his old age and medical condition.
Advocate Basant, also said, “there is no treatment in jail, adding that we are only asking for six weeks. Asaram’s condition is bad. Kindly show humanity and concern for him.” The State Government had said that Asaram, who had earlier sought bail for Allopathic treatment of his ailments, has now prayed to be treated at an Ayurveda Centre, only because his earlier round of petitions were not successful.
However, the plea filed by Asaram Bapu has been declined by the Supreme Court.