Pune: Asaram Bapu Receives Parole for Heart Treatment Amid Life Sentence for Rape

The Rajasthan High Court has granted a seven-day parole to self-styled godman Asaram Bapu, who is serving a life sentence for the rape of a minor, allowing him to undergo Ayurvedic medical treatment at a hospital in Pune. Asaram, 83, who has been in poor health, had requested permission to seek treatment for heart-related ailments.

Convicted by a special SC/ST court in Jodhpur in April 2018, Asaram had been receiving treatment at AIIMS-Jodhpur, where he was admitted for two days. His previous petitions for a suspension of the sentence on health grounds were denied by both the High Court and the Supreme Court. Despite numerous appeals, including representation by high-profile lawyers like Ram Jethmalani and Salman Khurshid, his requests have consistently been rejected.

A Division Bench comprising Justices P.S. Bhati and Munnuri Laxman at the High Court’s Jodhpur principal seat ordered that Asaram remain in police custody during his treatment. His counsel had petitioned for his transfer to Madhavbaug Multidisciplinary Cardiac Care Clinic and Hospital in Pune, citing the need for specialized Ayurvedic treatment. Earlier this year, in March, a similar plea for 14-day parole was rejected after the Pune police expressed concerns about potential law and order issues during his stay. Subsequently, Asaram was permitted to undergo Ayurvedic treatment at a hospital in Jodhpur for two weeks.

Asaram has been in custody since September 2013, following his arrest in Indore for the rape of a teenage girl at his ashram near Jodhpur. The victim reported that she was called to the ashram and assaulted on the night of August 15, 2013. In January 2023, a sessions court in Gujarat also convicted Asaram in a decade-old sexual assault case involving a female disciple and sentenced him to life imprisonment. The complainant, a woman from Surat, accused Asaram of repeatedly raping her at his ashram in 2013.