Asaram verdict shows Hindu religion needs awakening: Sena

Self-styled godman Asaram's conviction in a rape case shows that the Hindu religion needs an awakening, the Shiv Sena said today.

Asaram getting life in jail was a "big victory" for the survivor, Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe told reporters here.

"Any person can today call himself an incarnation of God, when he is not. Asaram proved this through his actions. His bhakts may have been unhappy with the verdict, but it was a big victory for the minor who was raped by him," she said.

"This verdict also indicates that the Hindu religion needed an awakening before and does so even now," Gorhe said.

It was unfortunate that people who believed in the Hindu religion did not escape the clutches of fake godmen, she said.

"One should only keep a relation with God and stay away from these middlemen," the Sena leader said.

A Jodhpur court today sentenced 77-year-old Asaram to life in prison for raping a teenage girl in his ashram five years ago, the second case of a powerful spiritual leader being convicted of a sexual offence in less than a year.

Meanwhile, activists of the Sambhaji Brigade ransacked Asaram's "ashram' near Akola in the Vidarbha region today, police said.

"Around a dozen activists barged into the ashram, broke furniture, and trampled on the photos and posters of Asaram. However, they did not attack anyone," an official said.