Police arrest Asaram's wife, daughter; release them

City police arrested self-styled godman Asaram Bapu's wife and daughter and later released them as they procured anticipatory bail in connection with a rape case filed against him by a Surat-based woman.

"As a part of the procedure we arrested Asaram's wife Laxmi and daughter Bharti yesterday as their names appear in the FIR filed in the rape case," a police official said.

"They were later released as they have procured anticipatory bail from Gandhinagar court," the official added.

The victim, one of the two Surat-based sisters, had in her complaint also named wife and daughter of Asaram as co-accused, alleging that they were hand-in-glove with the godman in exploitation of girls like her.

The two sisters had lodged complaints against Asaram's son Narayan Sai and the godman of rape, sexual assault, illegal confinement and other charges.

The elder sister, in her complaint against Asaram, had accused him of repeated sexual assaults between 1997 and 2006 during the time she was living at his ashram on the outskirts of Ahmedabad.

The younger sister had accused Sai of repeated sexual assault between 2002 and 2005 when she was living at the Surat ashram. Sai is at present in Surat police custody.
Asaram (72) is currently lodged in a Jodhpur jail after being arrested in September for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor girl at his Jodhpur ashram.

City police had taken his custody from Jodhpur jail and brought him to the city in October in the rape cased filed by one of the two sisters. He was later sent back to Jodhpur after his remand period was over.