*A close aide and disciple of Asaram Bapu, the self-styled godman accused of sexually assaulting a minor at his Jodhpur ashram, has approached the family of the victim in Uttar Pradesh's Shahjahanpur town, about 175 km from here, to forge a "compromise" in the matter.*
According to the father of the victim, Asaram's disciple Puja Ben had approached the family and had sought "pardon" for him. "The disciple requested us to withdraw our complaint and forgive Asaram," the father said.
He said pressure was being exerted on him to meet Asaram and discuss the matter, a suggestion which he has flatly refused. The distraught father said Asaram had asked the girls of his "gurukul" to come to Hardwar in last summer and had behaved strangely with them. "I had a suspicion then but I had no idea what was in his mind," he added.
Sources said there was a "great pressure" on the family to withdraw the complaint against Asaram. "Some of Asaram's disciples have been threatening the family with dire consequences if they do not withdraw the complaint," they said. The members of the family , according to the local resident, were ardent disciples of Asaram and had been associated with him for the past several years. They also used to organise "satsang" (religious discourses) at Shahjahanpur in which a large number of devotees used to take part. The district administration has tightened security around the house of the victim.
The people of the town have also come forward to lend full support to the family of the victim. They held a demonstration in the town on Wednesday and garlanded the picture of Asaram with shoes besides raising slogans demanding his immediate arrest.
Meanwhile, a top cop said Asaram will face arrest if he fails to appear before the Jodhpur police on Friday. Jodhpur police have said that investigations have corroborated earlier probes that the minor girl was in Jodhpur on the day she was allegedly sexually assaulted by Asaram.
DCP Ajay Kumar Lamba said: "Police teams that had gone to Chhindwara, Shahajapur and Indore have returned. The investigations conducted by the teams so far corroborate the earlier investigations when the girl was in Jodhpur. The charges levelled against Asaram Bapu were found to be correct," he said Reported by Deccan Herald 5 days ago.
According to the father of the victim, Asaram's disciple Puja Ben had approached the family and had sought "pardon" for him. "The disciple requested us to withdraw our complaint and forgive Asaram," the father said.
He said pressure was being exerted on him to meet Asaram and discuss the matter, a suggestion which he has flatly refused. The distraught father said Asaram had asked the girls of his "gurukul" to come to Hardwar in last summer and had behaved strangely with them. "I had a suspicion then but I had no idea what was in his mind," he added.
Sources said there was a "great pressure" on the family to withdraw the complaint against Asaram. "Some of Asaram's disciples have been threatening the family with dire consequences if they do not withdraw the complaint," they said. The members of the family , according to the local resident, were ardent disciples of Asaram and had been associated with him for the past several years. They also used to organise "satsang" (religious discourses) at Shahjahanpur in which a large number of devotees used to take part. The district administration has tightened security around the house of the victim.
The people of the town have also come forward to lend full support to the family of the victim. They held a demonstration in the town on Wednesday and garlanded the picture of Asaram with shoes besides raising slogans demanding his immediate arrest.
Meanwhile, a top cop said Asaram will face arrest if he fails to appear before the Jodhpur police on Friday. Jodhpur police have said that investigations have corroborated earlier probes that the minor girl was in Jodhpur on the day she was allegedly sexually assaulted by Asaram.
DCP Ajay Kumar Lamba said: "Police teams that had gone to Chhindwara, Shahajapur and Indore have returned. The investigations conducted by the teams so far corroborate the earlier investigations when the girl was in Jodhpur. The charges levelled against Asaram Bapu were found to be correct," he said Reported by Deccan Herald 5 days ago.