Jaipur, September 26, 2013: Shilpi, the warden of self-styled godman Asaram Bapu’s Chhindwara hostel, surrendered before a court in Jodhpur on Wednesday and was remanded to one-day police custody. A co-accused in the sexual assault case against Asaram Bapu, Shilpi had been absconding for weeks following Asaram’s arrest.

Last month, a 16-year-old inmate of Asaram’s Chhindwara ashram had accused the godman of sexually assaulting her at a farmhouse in Jodhpur on the pretext of treating her.

It was Shilpi who had advised the girl’s parents to take her to Asaram to rid her off evil spirits. “She has been arrested and will be presented before the court on Thursday,” Jodhpur DCP Ajay Pal Lamba toldThe Hindu.

Shilpi surrendered before the sessions court in Jodhpur after her anticipatory bail was rejected by the Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday.

Source: The Hindu, September 26, 2013