Asaram Bapu moves Rajasthan HC challenging holding of trial in Jodhpur jail

Jodhpur: Self-styled Godman Asaram Bapu on Wednesday moved the Rajasthan High Court challenging the decision of the trial court to hold the trial of a case, in which he is accused of raping a girl, in Jodhpur Central Jail. He moved the application in the high court soon after a similar petition before the trial court was turned down.

Counsel for the girl said that Asaram’s counsel moved an application in the trial court in the jail before the hearing could start, objecting to the order of the court to hold the trial in the prison premises. Judge Manoj Kumar Vyas immediately rejected the same, following which the defence moved the high court challenging the trial court’s order.

Asaram’s counsel Nishant Boda said that they have moved the high court, which is expected to take up the plea for hearing on Monday. Because of this, the hearing, which started in Jodhpur Central Jail today, could not progress.

Solanki said that the hearing will continue on Wednesday in the jail court as there was no direction from the high court on the application by the defence till now. 42 prosecution witnesses have already deposed before the court and currently the cross-examination of the 43rd and the last prosecution witness, the investigation officer of the case Chanchal Mishra, is in progress.

A teenaged girl of Asaram’s Chindwara-based gurukul has accused him of sexual assault at his ashram near Jodhpur.

The girl from Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, was the student of Asaram's ashram and had been allegedly advised to come to Jodhpur in the name of some treatment. Following her complaint against Asaram, he was arrested by Jodhpur police on August 31, 2013 and is in jail since then.

Meanwhile, the court in Jodhpur Central Jail was revived after a break of more than two decades. The court in the jail was established for the trial of the 365 alleged terrorists of Punjab arrested post-Bluestar Operation in June, 1984.