Supreme Court grants interim bail to rape convict Asaram Bapu on medical grounds
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has granted interim bail to rape convict Asaram Bapu, who is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting a teenage girl in 2013. The 86-year-old has been granted bail until March 31, 2025, citing medical grounds.
A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Rajesh Bindal observed that Bapu is suffering from various age-related ailments, including a heart condition. He is currently under treatment at the Arogya Medical Centre in Jodhpur.
The court directed that Asaram Bapu must not meet his followers or tamper with evidence during his bail period. He has been serving his sentence at Jodhpur Central Jail.
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Israeli Minister calls for West Bank destruction similar to Gaza's Jabalia
Tel Aviv: Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sparked outrage on Monday by declaring that parts of the occupied West Bank "must look like Gaza's Jabalia," referencing the extensive destruction inflicted on the besieged enclave during Israel's ongoing military operations.
The incendiary remarks came in response to a shooting near the illegal West Bank settlement of Kedumim, where three Israeli settlers were killed and eight others injured. Reports indicate that at least two Palestinians opened fire on vehicles and a bus before fleeing the scene.
Smotrich, notorious for his inflammatory rhetoric, specifically named Funduq, Nablus, and Jenin in his comments, calling for their destruction to mirror Jabalia, a northern Gaza area that has suffered severe devastation. Jabalia was heavily targeted during Israel’s military operations, which included strikes on hospitals and other civilian infrastructure.
Since the escalation of violence in October 2023, the Israeli assault on Gaza has resulted in over 45,800 Palestinian deaths, with approximately 11,000 individuals still missing and presumed buried under rubble. In the occupied West Bank, 835 Palestinians have been killed and 6,450 injured in Israeli attacks during the same period.
The violence comes amid heightened tensions and ongoing international condemnation of Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. Last year, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian, including the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and East Jerusalem, is unlawful. The Court declared the associated settlement regime, annexation policies, and exploitation of natural resources to be in violation of international law.
The ICJ also called on Israel to end its occupation, dismantle illegal settlements, provide reparations to Palestinian victims, and facilitate the return of displaced populations. UN experts have further recommended an arms embargo on Israel, sanctions on individuals and entities involved in illegal activities, and an end to commercial engagements harming Palestinian communities.
Smotrich's comments have drawn widespread criticism from human rights organizations and international observers, who view them as a dangerous escalation of the already volatile situation in the region.
