Fall of an empire: Two of Asaram's ashrams are partly demolished as land grab charges return to haunt guru



Self-styled guru Asaram Bapu is presently in police custody after claims he assaulted a teenage girl

Controversial godman Asaram Bapu seems unable to get rid of the land grab allegations which have once again returned to haunt him.



The spiritual guru, who is currently in police custody for allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl in the name of exorcism, is losing major portions of his ashrams in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, and Nashik, Maharashtra, even as a businessman has filed a case claiming misuse of government land by the godman in Indore.



The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) on Thursday removed an illegal encroachment by Asaram's ashram on a road adjoining the premises. The road was encroached upon 10 years ago.



Asaram's supporters interrupted the anti-encroachment drive and clashed with the demolition team and policemen present at the site. The protesters, comprising several women and old men, tried to push the constables and civic staff and jumped in front of the bulldozers in order to prevent the team from moving forward.



Nashik municipal officials said they had a hunch that the ashram would use women to prevent the demolition, and hence had brought a number of women police personnel to stop them.



The NMC had sent a notice to the ashram sometime back and even held a meeting with the office bearers of the ashram four days ago. In the meeting, the office bearers offered to remove the encroachment themselves. However, when they didn't keep their word, the NMC was forced to use bulldozers and excavators.

The demolition drive that began early in the morning had to be suspended in the afternoon due to the protests. It was then that the police and NMC officials met the ashram office-bearers and warned them that cases will be filed against them for obstructing government work.

Following the warning, the demolition was carried out smoothly.



However, Asaram's supporters claimed that this was part of a "well planned conspiracy" against their leader.



In another anti-encroachment drive, the Bhilwara district administration on Thursday razed a part of Asaram's ashram, which was illegally built on government land. The ashram had encroached over 4 bigha of government land near Harni Khurd area.



Bhilwara District Collector Onkar Singh said: "We have recovered the government land from the ashram and covered it with a boundary wall. The action was taken after a complaint."



A part of Asaram Bapu's ashram in Rajasthan's Bhilwara is bulldozed by the district administration

Whiff of scam



In Indore, a businessman, Digvijay Singh Bhandari, has filed a petition against AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh and five others for allotting seven hectares of land to Asaram's trust by allegedly violating land rules.



Digvijaya was Madhya Pradesh chief minister at the time of land allotment.



"In the petition I have maintained that the former chief minister, Digvijaya Singh, had allotted 6.89 acres of land on Khandwa Road in Indore on January 7, 1998, to Asaram Bapu Trust on a lease rent of Rs 1 annually in violation of norms," said Manohar Dalal, advocate of the complainant.



Bhandari has also alleged that the land was allotted for the purpose of setting up a garden but the godman used it for commercial purposes.