Asaram verdict to be delivered inside jail
Jodhpur, April 17: Apprehending trouble from thousands of followers of Asaram in case of an adverse judgment, the Jodhpur court will pronounce its verdict in a rape case against him inside the premises of the Central Jail here on April 25.
Considering an appeal from the Jodhpur Police Commissioner, a division bench of the Rajasthan High Court on Tuesday ordered the trial court to deliver its verdict inside the jail premises.
The division bench comprising Justice Gopal K. Vyas and Justice Ram Chandra Singh Jhala also issued guidelines to the Jodhpur Police Commissioner and the District Magistrate and Collector to ensure law and order in the city on the verdict day.
According to the high court's order, the Central Jail Superintendent and the district administration have been directed to make all arrangements for proceedings inside the jail for the pronouncement of the judgment.
The Police Commissioner, anticipating a huge presence of the godman's followers in the city on the judgment day, moved the high court to seek directions to the SC/ST cases trial court for pronouncing the judgment inside the jail. He also feared that the followers could indulge in vandalism and arson after the verdict.
The final arguments in the case were completed in the court of SC/ST Cases Special Judge Madhu Sudan Sharma on April 7.
Asaram was arrested in 2013 after a minor girl from Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) had reported sexual assault by Asaram in his ashram during her stay in Manai village on the outskirts of Jodhpur.
Thereafter, he was then brought from Indore and jailed in the Jodhpur Central jail. Several clashes have been reported between the police and his followers since then.
Asaram was booked under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the SC/ST Act and was denied bail by the Supreme Court.
He can face a maximum of 10 years of jail if found guilty.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengaluru narcotics crackdown: 15 held, drugs worth Rs 10.59 cr seized
Bengaluru (PTI): Fifteen people, including three foreign nationals, have been arrested for allegedly peddling banned narcotic substances across Bengaluru, police said on Tuesday.
The arrests were made in joint operations carried out in different police station limits following specific inputs about drug trafficking activities.
“The CCB Narcotics Control Wing and police stations under various limits of Bengaluru City have arrested a total of 15 persons, including three foreign nationals and 12 persons from other states, for selling banned narcotic substances such as hydroponic ganja, MDMA, cocaine, LSD pills, LSD strips, hashish oil and ganja,” the press release issued by the Office of the Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru City, stated.
Cases were registered under the NDPS Act based on credible information received on different dates that banned narcotic substances were being sold within the limits of the CCB Narcotics Control Wing and the police stations of Amruthahalli, Hebbagodi, JB Nagar, Sheshadripuram, Mahalakshmi Layout and Govindapura.
“Acting on the information, raids were conducted at the identified locations and a total of 15 people, including three foreign nationals and 12 persons from other states, were apprehended on different dates,” the release said.
According to police, during interrogation, the accused admitted that they were involved in drug peddling for quick money.
“During interrogation, the accused confessed that with the intention of making quick money, they procured banned narcotic substances such as hydroponic ganja, ganja, MDMA, cocaine, LSD pills, LSD strips and hashish oil from unidentified foreign and out-of-state persons and were selling them to the public, college students and IT/BT employees,” it said.
Police said a large quantity of drugs and other materials were seized from the accused.
“The seized items include 9 kg 460 grams of hydroponic ganja, 5 kg 677 grams of MDMA, 34 kg of ganja, 131 grams of cocaine, 462 ml of hashish oil, 29 LSD pills, 27 grams of LSD strips, one car, one two-wheeler and four mobile phones. The total value of the seized property is Rs 10.59 crore (market value Rs 21.50 crore),” the release stated.
In addition, Rs 24,500 in cash was also seized from the accused.
Efforts are underway to trace the foreign and other suppliers who provided the banned narcotic substances to the arrested persons, they said.
Investigation in the case is in progress.
