Godman Bapu & Son
Asaram Bapu, yet another self-styled godman, has been in jail for a number of cases.
- Two separate sexual assault cases have been lodged in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
- Asaram Bapu has been in jail since his arrest on August 31, 2013, by the Jodhpur Police.
- In particular, two Surat-based sisters had lodged individual complaints against this person and his son Narayan Sai.
- The father-son duo is accused of rape and illegal confinement, among other charges.
- Against Asaram, the elder sister has accused him of repeated sexual assaults on her when she was staying at his Motera Ashram, on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, between 2001 and 2006.
- Against Asaram’s son Narayan Sai, the younger sister has lodged a similar complaint.
- In Rajasthan, Asaram has been accused by a teenage girl of sexual assault at his ashram in Manai, near Jodhpur. The girl was a student living in the ashram, hailing from Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur.
Bapu fakes again
To Asaram’s dismay, the Supreme Court had refused to grant bail on various grounds including the health front, as the court found that he had submitted a “fictitious document”. Not stopping there, the court had also ordered registering a FIR against the ones who helped in preparing and filing the fake document.
Supreme Court asks
- The Supreme Court today pulled up the Gujarat government for their tardiness in this rape case and has questioned why haven’t the rape survivors been examined till now.
- The court also directed the government to file an affidavit in this regard.
- The court had also noted that this trial was unduly prolonged and that the prosecution witnesses were being attacked, leading to the death of two witnesses till date.
- On November 18, last year, the court had sought the Centre’s response and responses from the five states as well, on a plea seeking a CBI probe into the alleged murder of children and attacks on 10 witnesses in these rape cases.