High Court Upholds Asaram Life Sentence, Drops Gang-Rape Charges

The Rajasthan High Court has confirmed the life sentence of self-styled godman Asaram for raping a teenage girl in 2013, according to AP. While the bench affirmed the primary rape conviction, it acquitted him of gang-rape and gang penetrative sexual assault charges under the POCSO Act and the Indian Penal Code.

The judicial order requires Asaram to surrender at the Jodhpur Central Jail, dismissing his appeal against the conviction, AP reported, as reported by The Hindu.

Currently, the 86-year-old is out on bail until July 7, 2026 on medical grounds. He has repeatedly sought bail, citing his advanced age and deteriorating health.

Verdict and Charges

At the High Court's principal seat in Jodhpur, a Division Bench of Justices Arun Monga and Yogendra Kumar Purohit ruled on the appeals. The bench acquitted Asaram of criminal conspiracy under IPC Section 120-B and gang rape under Section 376(D), alongside clearing him of POCSO Act Sections 5(g) and 6.

The appellate court upheld his conviction for rape by a person in a position of trust under Section 376(2)(f), retaining the life sentence that a trial court awarded on April 25, 2018. Other confirmed convictions include trafficking under Section 370(4), wrongful confinement under Section 342 and insulting the modesty of a woman under Section 509, along with violations under Section 23 of the Juvenile Justice Act and Sections 7 and 8 of the POCSO Act.

In the same ruling, the bench acquitted co-accused Sharatchandra, director of a residential school in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, where the victim studied, and Shilpi, her hostel warden. A trial court had previously sentenced both to 20 years in prison for criminal conspiracy. The bench reserved its judgment on April 20, 2026 after completing hearings on the appeals.

Background and Evidence

In its findings, the bench stated that the minor victim's allegations against Asaram were credible and the offence of rape stood established. However, the judges concluded that the evidence on record was "not sufficient" to sustain the gang-rape and criminal conspiracy charges, AP reported.

The incident occurred in August 2013 when the parents of the 16-year-old victim, who were devotees of Asaram, brought her to his Manai village ashram near Jodhpur for the treatment of "evil spirits", according to AP. The victim said in her complaint that the godman sexually assaulted her for over an hour on the intervening night of August 15 and 16, 2013 and threatened her to keep her from revealing the truth to her parents.

When the girl told her parents about the assault, her father went to New Delhi to confront Asaram. Unable to meet him, he lodged a complaint with the police in the capital. The case was later transferred to Jodhpur, where the crime had taken place, and police arrested Asaram in Indore and brought him to the western Rajasthan town.