Setback to Asaram Bapu, court denies bail

In a major setback to self-styled godman Asaram Bapu, a sessions court on Friday rejected his bail plea in connection with a sexual assault case.

“The sessions court has rejected the bail plea of Asaram, saying it won’t be fair to grant him bail in current scenario,” advocate Pramod Kumar Verma told ANI.

Meanwhile, supporters of Asaram said they would be moving to the high court for his bail.

“We are disappointed as he (Asaram) was denied bail, but we would be moving to the high court,” said one of the supporters.

Asaram was arrested from his ashram at Indore in Madhya Pradesh and brought to Jodhpur on September 1, 2013. He is lodged in the Jodhpur Central Jail since then.

A 16-year-old girl had lodged a police complaint accusing Asaram of sexually assaulting her at his ashram near Jodhpur.

Asaram’s bail applications have earlier been rejected by the Rajasthan High Court and the Supreme Court.