Rajasthan High Court Grants Asaram Bapu Ayurvedic Treatment Under Police Custody

The Rajasthan High Court allowed Asaram Bapu, currently serving a life sentence for raping a minor, to undergo Ayurvedic treatment for seven days at a hospital in Maharashtra. Despite prior rejections of similar pleas, Justices permitted him treatment in police custody, following his recent health issues.

The Rajasthan High Court on Tuesday permitted self-styled godman Asaram Bapu, who is serving a life sentence for raping a minor, to undergo Ayurvedic treatment for seven days at an Ayurvedic hospital in Maharashtra under police custody.

Asaram, now 83, was apprehended in September 2013 and was recently admitted at AIIMS Jodhpur for two days due to heart-related issues.

Justices PS Bhati and Munnuri Laxman of the high court's Jodhpur bench decreed that Asaram would remain in police custody during his week-long treatment at the Ayurvedic hospital.

An ailing Asaram had lobbied for Ayurvedic care and specifically sought treatment at the Madhavbaug Multidisciplinary Cardiac Care Clinic and Hospital in Pune.

In March this year, Asaram again sought parole for 14 days for the same purpose, but the plea was denied owing to potential law and order threats as reported by Pune police.

Subsequently, he was permitted Ayurvedic treatment at a private hospital in Jodhpur for about two weeks.

Previous attempts by Asaram to obtain sentence suspension on health grounds were dismissed by both the high court and the Supreme Court.

Asaram was initially arrested in Indore for allegedly raping a teenage girl at his ashram and was convicted by a special POCSO court in 2018.

Additionally, a Gujarat court convicted him in January 2023 for a decade-old sexual assault case involving a female disciple and sentenced him to life imprisonment.

The victim, a Surat-based woman, accused him of repeatedly raping her at his ashram in 2013.

(With inputs from agencies.)