The Rajasthan High Court on Monday denied bail to self-styled godman Asaram Bapu for the second time in a case of alleged sexual assault of a minor girl in his ‘ashram’ in Jodhpur. The Court rejected his earlier bail application two months ago, while a Sessions Court framed charges against him last week.
Justice Nirmaljit Kaur of the High Court’s principal seat in Jodhpur, pronouncing the order, rejected defence counsel Ram Jethmalani’s contention that the charges against Asaram framed under Section 376 (2)(f) (rape on a woman when she is under 12 years of age) and other sections of Indian Penal Code were “redundant”.
The Judge gave credence to the argument of the government counsel that there was no change in the circumstances of the case since Asaram’s first bail application was dismissed. The Court had earlier reserved its order on the second bail application after completing the hearing on February 3.
The controversial spiritual guru has been lodged in the Central Jail in Jodhpur since his arrest in August, 2013 on charges of sexually assaulting a minor girl. Two other girls in Surat, who stayed in his Gujarat ‘ashram’, also later accused him of rape.
Mr. Jethmalani argued that the girl had come on her own to the ‘ashram’ with her parents. However, the government counsel affirmed that charge-sheet had strengthened the allegations against Asaram.
