Supreme Court denies Asaram medical bail, allows round-the-clock caretaker in jail
Asaram’s counsel told the court that his health was deteriorating and that he was suffering from multiple ailments, including coronary artery disease, thalassemia and recurrent blood loss.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court refused to grant self-styled guru Asaram Bapu bail based on medical grounds in a rape case, while permitting him to have a trained caretaker inside jail and the opportunity to re-approach the court if his health worsens. The decision came from a bench consisting of justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale.
The case stems from a petition filed by the 86-year-old inmate, who is currently serving a life sentence for rape in Rajasthan. The bench reviewed a report submitted by AIIMS, which recommended continuous monitoring due to his numerous health issues but did not recommend hospitalization. The court stated that the petitioner will have the freedom to have a trained caretaker assist him on an around-the-clock basis.
Asaram's legal team informed the court that his health was declining, citing ailments such as coronary artery disease, thalassemia, and recurrent blood loss. The court also noted that the application would be adjourned, giving the petitioner the ability to come back if his condition worsened. The Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Rajasthan government, contested the bail plea, citing the AIIMS report which did not necessitate hospitalization.
Mehta added that the petitioner had previously been granted a 20-day parole by the Rajasthan high court, a detail that had been withheld prior to the Supreme Court's hearing. Asaram's attorney argued that the parole was granted due to his extended time in prison and advanced age, not for medical reasons. Mehta further contended that the ongoing nature of the bail hearing was not disclosed to the high court.
The bench dismissed the practice, explaining that the order was issued not on the case's merits but based solely on the AIIMS report. Asaram was found guilty and given a life sentence for raping a woman at his ashram in Rajasthan in 2013. He has been incarcerated for over a decade and is also charged in a separate rape case involving another woman at his Motera ashram in Gujarat. His appeal in that case is still pending before the Gujarat high court.
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