Rape case facing self-styled godman Lal Sai surrenders

Self-styled godman Lal Bulchandani, popularly known as Lal Sai, today surrendered before the police in connection with a rape case here, police said.

He was on the run since last year after a girl lodged an FIR with the women's police station alleging that she had been raped by the godman in October 2008 at his ashram.

Sai has been accused of sexually abusing some girls after giving them medicine during meditation, at his ashram in Bairagarh area, police said.

Sai today surrendered before the women's police station after which he was produced in a local court from where he was sent to the jail as his bail plea was rejected by the court.

Judicial Magistrate First Class Kirti Sharma refused to grant bail to the godman saying that the allegation against him were serious.

The godman's counsel Ajay Gupta said that the medical tests on his client had not been carried out in connection with the 2008 rape case and therefore, he is entitiled for a bail.

In the first week of June, Madhya Pradesh's director general of police (DGP) SK Raut had directed the police to step up efforts to arrest Sai at the earliest.

The DGP directive came after a local court directed the police to arrest Sai at the earliest.