Ahmedabad, May 5 The Gujarat High Court has dismissed a plea filed by Narayan Sai -- self-styled godman Asaram's son -- seeking suspension of his life sentence in a 2001 rape case.
Sai's appeal against his conviction by a Surat court is pending before the high court.
In an order passed on Monday, a division bench of Justices Ilesh Vora and R T Vachhani dismissed Sai's petition, stating that considering the gravity of the offence, it was "difficult for us to come to a prima-facie conclusion that the applicant-convict has a fair chance of (securing) acquittal (from the appellate court)."
"Thus, on merits, we do not find any sufficient grounds for granting relief with respect to suspension of sentence and grant of bail," the order said.
Though Sai had undergone an 11-year jail term, he has not cooperated in the final hearing of his appeal against the conviction since 2019 by either trying to get temporary or permanent bail by filing numerous applications, the HC said.
He was not interested at all in expeditious hearing of his appeal, and adopted various tactics to delay the proceedings, the judges said.
A Surat court in April 2019 sentenced Sai to life imprisonment in a rape case filed against him by a former woman devotee in 2013.
The court convicted him under Indian Penal Code sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural offences), 323 (assault), 506-2 (criminal intimidation) and 120-B (conspiracy). Further, his aides Dharmishtha alias Ganga, Bhavna alias Jamuna and Pavan alias Hanuman were sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment.
Sai's father Asaram has been convicted in two separate rape cases.
