Asaram Bapu has been in jail since August, 2013, for allegedly sexually assaulting a schoolgirl.
From Wednesday, the rape case against spiritual guru Asaram Bapu will be heard in the prison in Rajasthan where he has spent nearly two years. A court today took the unusual decision after considering the huge crowds during his court appearances.
Trial court judge Manoj Kumar Vyas said it would be appropriate to hold the trial in the Jodhpur jail, given the law and order situation, the security of the court staff, counsels and also Asaram.
Every time Asaram, 74, came to court for a hearing, a large crowd of devotees would gather for a glimpse, said officials. To prevent chaos, a contingent of policemen near the courtroom was often forced to use batons.
Despite that, there have been a number of law and order issues. A witness against Asaram was attacked in the court premises in February, following which the jail authorities had asked for tighter security for hearings.
Besides, the judge had been sent an anonymous threatening letter last year and a police inspector received threats on WhatsApp. Since 2013, nine witnesses have been attacked and two have died.
Asaram has been in jail since August 2013 over allegations of raping a schoolgirl in one of his ashrams. He was arrested after the 16-year-old, whose parents were both devotees, lodged a police complaint.
Two months later Asaram, along with his son Narayan Sai, were booked for the alleged rape of two sisters at their ashram in Gujarat's Surat.
The girl's counsel PC Solanki said on Saturday, the high court registrar had written a letter to the court, requesting the trial be shifted to the jail. "In pursuance of this letter, the trial court issued an order that the trial will be held in the court from August 5 at 2 PM," said Judge Vyas.
In November 2013, the prosecution had asked for video-conferencing from jail, but the court rejected it after protests from Asaram's team.