Followers of spiritual guru Asaram Bapu were attacked by a mob in Chand Keda on Friday morning who were protesting the death of two boys in Asaram Bapu’s ashram.

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The supporters of spiritual guru Asaram Bapu assaulted media persons in Ahmedabad on Friday, damaging cameras of television crews. The attack happened at a press conference called by Asaram Bapu's ashram. The unanswered questions over the deaths of Dipesh Praful Vaghela, 10, and his cousin Abhishek Shantilal Vaghela, 11, whose bodies were found in the riverbed near the Asaram Bapu Ashram on the outskirts of the city on July 6 after they had been missing for two days triggered the attack. Asaram Bapu ashram has been facing protests since then. Several organizations have called for shutdown in Ahmedabad on Friday to protest what they see as shoddy investigations into the mysterious deaths near the Asaram Bapu ashram.

An outdoors broadcast van belonging to Network18 was damaged in the violence and journalists from television channels were manhandled. Journalists were attacked and their equipment damaged on Friday by supporters of Ashram Bapu during a bandh called to protest against the mysterious death of two boys studying in the ashram's gurukul. Supporters of the Ashram Bapu came out with sticks and other items used as weapons and attacked a group of journalists who were outside the Ashram in Motera on the outskirts of the city. "We were outside the Ashram covering the bandh when supporters of the Bapu came out from inside and attacked us," Gopi Ganghar of Aajtak who sustanined injuries in the incident said. "They also damaged equipment and OB vans of the news channel," Ganghar, who was later hospitalized, said.

On Friday, Asaram Bapu went to the house of Diptesh's father Praful Vaghela but was barely there for three minutes before he was booed away. He had to literally flee from the place when people tried to surround his car. Vaghela, who has been observing 'maun vrat', or vow of silence, for the last four days to protest the deaths of his son and nephew, ordered that all the things Asaram Bapu had touched, be burnt. Even the wooden mat he sat on was set ablaze.

The anger spilled over to other parts of the city, where civil society groups as well as the Gujarat Congress and the Ahmedabad Bar Association have called for a shutdown. Areas near the ashram like Ranip, Sabarmati and Nirnayanagar observed the shutdown. Public buses and other vehicles were stopped about two-kilometres away from the ashram, observing the occasion of Guru Purnima, a day dedicated to teachers. Pilgrims were hooted at as they walked towards the ashram. Many buses were deflated and stone-throwing was reported despite police presence. Police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse the angry mob.

Meanwhile, Vaghela has alleged that the two boys were killed and thrown into the river after some esoteric ritual at the ashram. However, this is not the first time the controversial Godman has been in the news. There are a number of court cases against him, which include allegations that he grabbed forestland in Gurgaon.
The boys were residents of the ashram. Cops investigating the deaths say they suspect it as a case of drowning. However, the families of the victims say they suspect foul play. Ahmedabad observed a shutdown against the alleged shoddy probe into the deaths of two children at Asaram’s ashram.