Rajasthan High Court Grants Asaram First-Ever Parole After 13 Years In Jail
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of India is scheduled to hear Asaram's plea for regular bail on August 6.
Published : August 4, 2026 at 6:47 PM IST
Jodhpur: The Rajasthan High Court here has granted self-styled godman Asaram parole for the first time since he was imprisoned nearly 13 years ago for the sexual assault of a minor.
The 87-year-old, who is serving a life sentence, has previously received interim bail for medical treatment but had never been released on parole.
During the hearing, the Rajasthan government opposed the parole plea and argued that the district parole committee, headed by the district collector, had rejected the application after raising several concerns.
The government submitted that the victim's family could face a potential threat if Asaram was released. It also pointed out that a criminal case is pending against him in Gujarat and that the medical officer had not issued a fitness certificate recommending his release on parole.
However, a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sanjeet Purohit said that there was no concrete basis for denying parole on the grounds cited by the authorities.
Asaram's counsel, Yashpal Singh Rajpurohit, said the court was not convinced by the state's objections and approved the parole.
The High Court noted that Asaram has already spent 13 years, one month and 24 days in jail. It noted that he had previously been granted interim bail and that there had been no reported instance of him misusing the relief or posing any threat to society or witnesses during those periods.
The bench granted 20 days of first parole on the condition that Asaram furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000 along with two sureties of Rs 25,000 each.
Asaram is serving a sentence of life imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life in the sexual assault case, while all his co-accused have been acquitted.
Following his arrest in 2013, Asaram was regularly produced before the trial court during the proceedings. However, owing to the large gatherings of his supporters, the trial court pronounced the verdict from inside the jail premises in 2018.
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