Spiritual guru Asaram told the Supreme Court he was being projected as a Dracula who drank children's blood, but the apex court on Friday declined to restrain media - both print and visual - from carrying news reports about his conduct.
The apex court bench of Chief Justice P. Sathasivam, Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai and Justice Ranjan Gogoi said it cannot ask media not to report on information they get from police or other sources after Asaram's counsel told the bench that the spiritual guru was being projected as a dracula.
The court told Asaram's counsel he has other remedies and the apex court was not the only destination as it was told that media was reporting the spiritual guru's wife and daughter were supplying him girls.
"Do you mean to say that you have no remedy at all except asking us to restrain media?" asked Chief Justice Sathasivam as counsel for the self-styled godman pressed the plea to restrain media from carrying speculative reporting.
"I am in the habit of drinking children's blood. I am a Dracula', this is what media is writing," Asaram's counsel told the court. The court said it could be some (ashram) inmates who might have alleged this.
Counsel told the court he was not seeking to restrain the entire media, but only two news channels which were regularly carrying slanderous reports about Asaram.
As counsel said two channels were relentlessly carrying unfounded reports about Asaram, the court observed, "If they proceed further, you have further remedies. If you have no remedies under the civil and criminal provision, (it is only) then we come into the picture."
