Self-styled godman Asaram will remain behind bars after the Gujarat High Court on Tuesday rejected his plea seeking 20 days of temporary bail.
A division bench of Justice Gita Gopi and Justice L S Pirzada dismissed the plea in court. The detailed written order was yet to be released at the time of filing the report.
The court’s decision came in the backdrop of a recent Supreme Court order, which allows Asaram to approach it again if his health condition worsens.
Who is Asaram?
Born Asumal Sirumalani Harpalani, Asaram rose to prominence as a self-styled godman and eventually built a large network of ashrams in India and abroad. His public standing changed sharply after he was convicted in two separate rape cases.
In 2018, a Jodhpur court sentenced him to life imprisonment for raping a minor girl at his ashram near Jodhpur in 2013.
He was convicted again in January 2023. A Gandhinagar court found him guilty of raping and sodomising a former female devotee in a case connected to his ashram in Ahmedabad’s Motera area.
Asaram is currently lodged in Jodhpur jail, where he is serving his life sentence.
Why did Asaram seek temporary bail?
The plea before the Gujarat High Court sought 20 days of temporary bail after the Rajasthan High Court recently granted Asaram 20 days of parole in the Jodhpur rape case.
The Rajasthan court’s decision had considered his age and the fact that he had spent more than 13 years in custody in that case. His counsel also pointed out that concerns raised by the authorities regarding his release had been rejected by the Rajasthan court.
Before approaching the Gujarat High Court, Asaram had sought parole from the Gujarat authorities. That request was rejected, following which he moved the High Court seeking temporary bail.
What did Asaram’s lawyer argue?
Asaram’s counsel relied mainly on the Rajasthan High Court’s parole order.
The argument was that when another High Court had already considered his age and long period of incarceration and granted him temporary relief, Gujarat should also consider giving him similar relief.
His lawyer, however, clarified that the plea before the Gujarat High Court was not based on his medical condition. Asaram is already receiving medical treatment under directions issued by the Supreme Court.
What did the Gujarat government say?
The Gujarat government opposed the plea.
Public Prosecutor Hardik Dave argued that Asaram had not presented an independent reason that would justify temporary bail in the Gujarat case. According to the State, he was essentially seeking to extend the benefit of an order passed by another High Court in a separate case.
The prosecution also pointed out that Asaram’s side had not placed before the Gujarat High Court the actual grounds on which the Rajasthan High Court had granted parole.
The State argued that these details were important for the Gujarat court to consider before exercising its discretion. It also warned that granting relief without examining those grounds could potentially conflict with a subsequent Supreme Court order.
The State’s position was that parole or temporary release cannot be treated as an automatic right and that Asaram needed to establish an independent basis for such relief.
What did the Supreme Court order say?
The Gujarat High Court’s decision also took into account an August 6 order of the Supreme Court, passed shortly after the Rajasthan High Court granted Asaram parole on August 3.
The Supreme Court’s order followed a medical assessment by AIIMS Jodhpur. The report said Asaram did not require hospitalisation but needed round-the-clock assistance from a trained attendant.
The Supreme Court allowed him to engage a caregiver of his choice. It also kept his separate plea seeking suspension of his sentence pending and allowed him to approach the court again if his health condition deteriorated.
It was this option that the Gujarat High Court relied on while rejecting the temporary bail plea.
With the Supreme Court already providing a route for him to seek further relief if his health worsens, the Gujarat High Court found no grounds to grant him temporary bail at this stage.
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