The Gujarat High Court on Friday granted Narayan Sai, a convicted rapist, permission to visit his father, self-styled godman Asaram, in Jodhpur Central Jail for four hours, citing “humanitarian grounds” due to Asaram’s deteriorating health.
Narayan Sai is currently serving a sentence in a Surat jail for repeatedly sexually assaulting a woman at his father’s ashram between 2002 and 2005. His father, Asaram, is also serving a life sentence in Jodhpur Central Jail, having been convicted of the sexual exploitation of a minor.
A division bench of Justices Ilesh Vora and S.V. Pinto, while rejecting Sai’s request for a 30-day temporary bail to visit his father, allowed him to meet Asaram in Jodhpur for a four-hour visit. The court ruled that the visit would take place under police protection and at Sai’s own expense.
In his application for bail, Sai argued that Asaram, aged 86, was suffering from “various life-threatening ailments” and was “at a very high risk of life.” His legal team highlighted Asaram’s critical condition, stating that he had suffered multiple heart attacks while in custody and that the prison authorities were ill-equipped to manage his health emergencies.
Sai’s lawyers stressed the urgency of the situation, arguing that his father’s medical condition was rapidly deteriorating and that he had not been able to see him for over 11 years. Despite these submissions, the court opted to grant a limited four-hour visit rather than the extended 30-day bail requested.
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