Motera Gurukul Deaths (2008).

The Motera Gurukul deaths case remains one of the most controversial and emotionally charged chapters in the history of Asaram Bapu's organization. On 3 July 2008, two young boys—ten-year-old Dipesh Vaghela and eleven-year-old Abhishek Vaghela, who were cousins and students at the residential school (gurukul) operated by Asaram's trust in Motera, Ahmedabad—went missing from the school premises under mysterious circumstances.

The boys' parents were notified of their disappearance, but they alleged that the ashram administration was highly uncooperative and tried to prevent them from filing a formal police complaint. Two days later, on 5 July 2008, the mutilated bodies of the two children were recovered from the dry bed of the Sabarmati River, located a short distance behind the Motera ashram. The discovery triggered immediate and intense public anger in Ahmedabad.

Initial post-mortem reports and medical observations indicated the presence of multiple cuts and alleged bite marks on the children's bodies. These findings, combined with the ashram's reluctance to cooperate with the parents and police, led to widespread allegations that the children had been victims of occult practices, black magic, or human sacrifice conducted by residents of the ashram.

The incident sparked massive state-wide public agitations in Gujarat. Protestors clashed with police, demanding a thorough investigation and the closure of the Motera Gurukul. Asaram and his representatives vehemently denied the allegations, characterizing them as a conspiracy to defame their spiritual activities. Despite these denials, the public outcry forced the Gujarat government to order a CID (Crime) probe into the deaths.

Around the same period, two more boys were found dead under suspicious circumstances at a sister-gurukul run by the trust in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh. The dual incidents led to widespread panic among parents, prompting many to withdraw their children from ashram-run schools across the country. Local protests demanded the immediate cancellation of land leases granted to the trust.

The investigation faced significant delays, with the victim's families accusing the police of working under political pressure to shield Asaram's organization. Forensic examinations and investigator notes remained contested, and the exact cause of death was never conclusively established to the satisfaction of the parents, who continued their legal battle for over a decade, demanding murder charges instead of negligence.

In response to the public pressure, the Gujarat government appointed a judicial inquiry commission led by retired High Court Judge D.K. Trivedi to investigate the circumstances surrounding the child deaths and evaluate safety measures in residential religious schools (detailed in a separate dossier in this archive).

This case file documents the chronology of the 2008 events, the initial forensic findings, and the subsequent public protests. It highlights the systemic challenges of investigating child safety violations in private, religious residential institutions and remains a critical reference for institutional accountability.