Life-long jail to Asaram, 20 years each to two accomplices for raping minor

The godman's two other accomplices, Sharad and Shilpi, were sentenced to 20 years each in jail in the case while remaining two co-accused Shiva and Prakash were acquitted.

Additional Sessions Judge Madhusudan Sharma, heading the special SC/ST court sentenced the trio after convicting them of various offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO), in a proceeding held in a specially-convened court inside Jodhpur Central Jail premises.

"Asaram was given life-long jail term, while his accomplices Sharad and Shilpi were sentenced to 20 years in jail by the court," Public Prosecutor Pokar Ram Bishnoi told reporters, soon after the court pronounced its judgement on quantum of sentences to the three convicts.

Asaram would be in prison till his natural death, said Bishnoi, adding the court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on him.

“We argued that Asaram is not a saint, but a sinner. He called the victim from the hostel under a conspiracy and raped her. Accordingly, we demanded maximum punishment for him. Sharad and Shilpi too were part of the conspiracy,” he said.

The verdict was delivered by Special Judge Sharma in a especially-convened courtroom inside the Jodhpur Central Jail premises as per the directions of the Rajasthan High Court in view of the possible threat to law and order by Asaram's supporters following his conviction and sentencing.

The court pronounced its verdict amid tight security arrangements outside the Jodhpur Central Jail as well as the city to maintain law and order, which has remained undisturbed with no untoward incident taking place so far.

Besides making elaborate security arrangements, prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC too were clamped in the city to thwart any possible ganging up and gathering of Asaram's supporters to vitiate the peace in the city.

Apprehending trouble by his supporters, the police had deployed additional forces including its riot control units, special task force, mounted policemen and kept a tight vigil on various hotels and inns of the city.

The police had also made elaborate arrangements to check influx of Asaram's supporters to the city through trains or by road.

The special court had finished hearing the final arguments in the case on on April 7 itself and had slated April 25 to pronounce its order on the quantum of sentences to the convicts.

 Asaram had been arrested on a complaint of sexual exploitation by a teenage girl from Shahajahanpur of Uttar Pradesh, who had joined the godman's ashram at Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh for her studies.

 The victim had alleged in her complaint that Asaram had called her to his Ashram in Manai area near Jodhpur and raped her on the night of August 15, 2013.

 The godman was subsequently arrested from Indore and brought to Jodhpur on 1 September 2013, since when he has been lodged in judicial custody in Jodhpur jail.

 Following through probe into the case, the Jodhpur police had chargesheeted Asaram and 4 other co-accused, Shiva, Shilpi, Sharad and Prakash on November 6, 2013.

 The trial in the case was initially started in the Jodhpur District and Session court on March 19, 2017, but was subsequently shifted to the special court for SC/ST Cases on December 16, 2016.

 During the trial, Asaram had tried his best to obtain bail and moved various courts twelve times, but all his efforts proved futile with the trial courts rejecting his bail pleas six times, the Rajasthan High Court thrice and the Supreme Court too thrice.