The Rajasthan High Court has granted a 20-day regular parole to convicted rape accused Asaram, holding that the state government failed to provide sufficient grounds for rejecting his parole application. The order was passed on Monday by a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sanjeet Purohit.
In its order, the High Court noted that Asaram has spent more than 13 years in Jodhpur Central Jail and had previously been granted interim bail on multiple occasions without violating any conditions. The bench observed that there was no evidence of him attempting to abscond, influencing witnesses or causing any law and order issues during those releases.
However, the High Court held that these concerns were speculative and unsupported by evidence. It ruled that the parole application should be decided strictly under the Rajasthan Prisoners Release on Parole Rules and said that pending cases or convictions in other states could not be used to deny parole in this matter.
Separately, the Supreme Court on Tuesday heard Asaram's plea seeking interim bail on medical grounds. During the hearing, the court was informed that an AIIMS medical board had concluded that while he does not require hospitalisation, he needs round-the-clock medical assistance. The matter has been listed for further hearing on August 6.
