The Gujarat High Court on Thursday upheld the state government’s decision to acquire 11 acres of land in Ahmedabad’s Motera, which was given decades ago to an ashram run by self-styled godman Asaram.
Virk told the bench that the land, originally allotted decades ago for limited religious use, was subject to strict conditions. (Photo: Gujarat High Court)Justice Baibhavi d. A bench in Nanavati dismissed a petition filed by government pleader GH Virk Sant Sri Asaram Ashram after defending the government’s decision to regain control over the parcel of land spread over 45,000 square meters.
The land is adjacent to Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium and Sardar Patel Sports Complex, an area identified by the state as important for sports and urban infrastructure, including plans linked to the Commonwealth Games 2030.
Virk told the bench that the land, originally allotted decades ago for limited religious use, was subject to strict conditions.
These conditions prevent commercial activities and unauthorized construction. But officials said inspections revealed that the ashram had expanded far beyond the permitted area and had built multiple structures without approval.
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The state government also noted that the ashram had repeatedly requested regularization of these structures, which it argued was an admission of illegality.
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has rejected applications to regularize more than 30 unauthorized structures on the site for violating planning and land-use norms.
The ashram’s founder, Asaram, was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a special court in Jodhpur in 2018 in a rape case involving a minor. He was also convicted in a separate rape case filed by a female disciple in Surat, where a Gandhinagar court sentenced him to life imprisonment.
