Last Updated on 13/08/2024 by wccexam Desk
Rape convict Asaram Bapu granted parole: Asaram has got a big relief from the Rajasthan High Court in the rape case. The court has approved 7 days parole for Asaram for treatment. This is the first time in the last 11 years that Asaram will come out of jail on parole. He will be taken to Maharashtra for treatment in police custody. Currently, he is serving a life sentence in Jodhpur Central Jail.
Parole granted for the first time in 11 years
Actually, exactly 11 years ago, Asaram was arrested. There was a day and today, Asaram has been in jail for the last 11 years. Asaram was convicted in a rape case by a Gandhinagar court. In this case, the Sessions Court sentenced Asaram to life imprisonment. This rape case against Asaram was registered in the year 2013. However, the rape incident with the victim happened between the years 2001 and 2006.
Son also in jail for sexual harassment
It is worth noting that the victim’s sister had also filed a rape case against Asaram’s son Narayan Sai. In this case, Narayan Sai was sentenced to life imprisonment in April 2019. The FIR for the case in which Asaram was sentenced was registered in 2013 at Chandkheda police station in Ahmedabad.
Related news
- Ampox is once again raising concerns, WHO has declared it a public health emergency for the second time in two years
- LIVE: Angry crowd entered the hospital after doing RG in Kolkata, protesters vandalized it
- Genocide case filed against Sheikh Hasina in International Criminal Tribunal, interim government will conduct investigation under UN supervision
- Mahindra Thar Roxx: Mahindra’s blast! 5 door Thar Roxx launched at a very low price, features are amazing
- Jharkhand: Lightning struck the ground during a match in Simdega, 3 hockey players died
FIR against 7 people including Asaram
According to the FIR, the victim was raped several times between 2001 and 2006 in an ashram outside Ahmedabad city. The victim had filed a case of rape and illegal confinement against Asaram and seven others. Apart from Asaram, his wife Laxmi and daughter Bharti were also made accused in this case.
The court had held only Asaram guilty
However, the Sessions Court judge DK Soni has convicted only Asaram in this case and sentenced him. The remaining 6 accused have been acquitted due to lack of evidence. However, one of the accused died during the trial in October 2013. Asaram used to call himself ‘Bhagwan’ and his followers used to call him ‘Bapu’. At one time, many big celebrities were also among Asaram’s followers, but today he has been branded as a ‘rapist’.
How did Asuman Thaumal Harpalani become Asaram?
Asuman Thaumal Harpalani was born on 17 April 1941 in Barani village of Sindh region of present-day Pakistan. After partition, the family settled in Ahmedabad city of Gujarat. It is said that Asumal Harpalani alias Asaram used to drive a horse carriage. He had once worked as a tea vendor on the roadside and had also tried his hand in the liquor business.
According to Asaram’s website, he went to Lilaji Maharaj to attain God. Lilaji Maharaj taught him spiritual practice. On 7 October 1964, Asaram had ‘self-realization’. In this way, he became ‘Asaram’ from Asumal. It is also said that Asaram had a desire to become ‘God’.
In 1972, Asaram opened his first ashram in Motera town, 10 km away from Ahmedabad. Gradually, Asaram became the ‘Bapu’ of the people. It is claimed on Asaram’s website that today he has 400 ashrams and 40 gurukuls all over the world. It is also claimed that he has three crore devotees all over the world.
Asaram had become a big ‘saint’ not only for India but for the whole world. Big celebrities and politicians used to come to his ashram to pay their obeisance. Asaram’s downfall began when the half-burnt bodies of two children were found in his ashram in 2008.
In fact, on 5 July 2008, the half-burnt bodies of 10-year-old Abhishek Vaghela and 11-year-old Deepak Vaghela were found in the dry bed of the Sabarmati river outside the Motera Ashram in Gujarat. Both were cousins. The family members alleged that both of them were enrolled in a Gurukul and the children were sacrificed for tantra-mantra.
When this matter escalated, the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi constituted an inquiry commission. The report of the commission was not made public. Some arrests were also made. Many were also held guilty of murder. Asaram was not harmed in this case, but his troubles started increasing.
The ‘evil deeds’ of Asaram and his family came to light in 2013. At that time, Asaram was accused of raping a minor girl. The girl’s parents said that their daughter lived in Gurukul in Chhindwara. One day they received a call that their daughter was unwell, she was possessed by ghosts and now only Asaram could cure her.
The girl’s parents took her to the ashram in Jodhpur. It was alleged that Asaram called their 16-year-old daughter to the hut and raped her. A case was filed against Asaram on 15 August 2013. On 31 August, Asaram was arrested from Indore.
A few months after the rape case of a minor girl came to light, two sisters also filed a case. One sister filed a case against Asaram and the other against Narayan Sai.
Both the sisters alleged rape, unnatural sex and illegal confinement. The sisters alleged that Asaram and his son Narayan Sai raped them between 2001 and 2006. Asaram’s wife Laxmi and daughter Bharti were also made accused in this case. One sister had filed a case against Narayan Sai in Surat and the other against Asaram in Ahmedabad.
Asaram was convicted in April 2018 in the case of raping a minor girl in Jodhpur’s ashram. The Jodhpur court sentenced Asaram to life imprisonment.
After this, in April 2019, the Surat court held Narayan Sai guilty of rape. Narayan Sai was sentenced to life imprisonment. Along with this, an order was also given to pay a fine of Rs 5 lakh to the victim. Now, the Gandhinagar court has convicted Asaram and he has been sentenced to life imprisonment in this case.
In April last year, the body of a girl was found in an ashram in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh. This body was kept in a car. The girl was 13-14 years old. The girl whose body was found was missing for many days. Five months before this incident, a 27-year-old youth also disappeared from Asaram’s ashram in Sabarmati. His family had filed a missing person’s report. In 2008, the half-burnt bodies of two brothers were also found in the dry bed of the Sabarmati river outside the Motera ashram.
In 2013, a follower of Asaram, Sudha Patel, gave an interview to Aaj Tak/India Today, in which she told about the ‘dark deeds’ of Asaram’s ashram. Sudha Patel joined Asaram’s Motera ashram in 1986. Sudha Patel claimed that two women were given code names in the ashram. One was named ‘Hedal’ and the other was named ‘Bangla’. In Gujarati, Hedal means peacock. Sudha Patel claimed that the job of those two women was to keep an eye on the young girls coming to the ashram.
According to Sudha, Asaram used to throw fruits or candy on the girl he liked. This meant that the girl should be convinced. Sudha said that it was very rare that a girl protested. On the contrary, most of the girls and their families believed that God had blessed them. Not only this, sometimes the girls even used to argue about who would go to Asaram’s hut today.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)