Live | Asaram convicted for raping minor girl

A special Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe court on Wednesday convicted self-styled godman Asaram in a 2013 minor girl rape case.

According to police sources, co-accused Shiva and Shilpi have been convicted and Sharad and Prakash have been acquitted.

Here are live updates from our correspondent Mohammed Iqbal:

'We had complete faith in judiciary'

"I am happy to get justice," the father of the victim said after Asaram was convicted by the Jodhpur court.

"We had complete faith in judiciary and are happy that we got justice," he told media persons in Shahjahanpur.

Asaram convicted

Asaram has been convicted of raping a minor girl.

Special Judge Madhusudhan Sharma delivered the verdict in the Jodhpur Central jail premises.

Further details are awaited.

Security outside Jodhpur Central Jail, supporter detained

Strict security is in place outside Jodhpur Central Jail where the verdict will be pronounced. The road leading to the jail is out of bounds for people.

A supported of Asaram was detained when he reached near the jail and tried to put a garland on his poster, but the policemen nabbed him. The poster was put on a wall of a corridor outside the jail boundary where the family members of prisoners wait. The supporter managed to reach there despite high-security arrangements.

Victim’s home gets more security

The case against Asaram pertains to allegations of rape levelled by a minor girl in 2013. The victim, belonging to Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, was staying at Asaram’s ashram in Manai village near Jodhpur.

The district administration has stepped up security near the house of the victim. “Five policemen have been deployed at the house and a strict vigil is being maintained,” SP (City) Dinesh Tripathi has said.

Prohibitory orders in Jodhpur

The Jodhpur police had enforced prohibitory orders under Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code in the city till April 30, stopped entry of Asaram’s followers and evacuated his ashram at Palgaon on the outskirts of the town to prevent any untoward incident.

The Home Ministry has asked Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana to tighten security and deploy additional forces ahead of the verdict. The Ministry told the three States to beef up security. and ensure that no violence takes place after the verdict. They were also told to deploy additional forces in sensitive places. These States have a large number of Asaram followers.