New Delhi:

Rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim has been granted a 20-day parole, according to the sources. The self-styled godman was secretly taken out of the jail early morning, at 5:26 am.

It is believed that Gurmeet Ram Rahim will stay at the Dera Ashram in Sirsa, Haryana, this time.

Reportedly, this is the 12th time Ram Rahim has come out of jail since 2017.

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was sentenced in 2017 in the case of raping two of his disciples. He is serving a 20-year sentence and is lodged in the Sunaria jail in Haryana’s Rohtak district.

In 2019, the Dera chief and three others were also convicted for the murder of a journalist Ram Chander Chhatarpati more than 16 years ago.

In May 2024, the high court acquitted him and four others – Avtar Singh, Krishan Lal, Jasbir Singh, and Sabdil Singh – in the 2002 murder of the sect’s former manager Ranjit Singh, citing “tainted and sketchy” investigations in the matter. A special CBI court had sentenced them to life imprisonment. The court also imposed fines on all five as Rs 31 lakh on Ram Rahim, Rs 1.50 lakh on Sabdil Singh, Rs 1.25 lakh each on Jasbir Singh and Krishan Lal, and Rs 75,000 on Avtar Singh.

Ranjit Singh was shot dead in the Khanpur Colony of Haryana’s Kurukshetra on July 10, 2002. Mr Singh’s murder was linked to his suspected role in the circulation of a letter exposing sexual exploitation allegations. The letter described how women followers were being abused.

Ram Rahim was last granted 20-day parole on October 2, 2024. Back then, he was barred from participating in election-related activities, making speeches and staying in the state during the period.

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court today issued a notice to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh along with four others, in connection with the 2002 murder case of Ranjit Singh, a former Dera manager. The notice comes after the CBI moved a plea challenging the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s decision to acquit Ram Rahim and his co-accused in the case.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjeev Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar noted that the case is already being heard by a bench led by Justice Bela M Trivedi and the matter will now be listed before her bench for further proceedings.

On July 10, 2002, Ranjit Singh was shot dead in the Khanpur Colony of Haryana’s Kurukshetra. Mr Singh’s murder was linked to his suspected role in the circulation of an anonymous letter exposing allegations of sexual exploitation of women by Gurmeet Ram Rahim at the Dera’s headquarters in Sirsa. The letter, which described how women followers were being abused, had caused public outcry.

In 2021, a special CBI court in Panchkula convicted Gurmeet Ram Rahim and four others – Avtar Singh, Krishan Lal, Jasbir Singh, and Sabdil Singh – for their roles in the murder. The court awarded life imprisonment to all five and imposed substantial fines: Rs 31 lakh on Ram Rahim, Rs 1.50 lakh on Sabdil Singh, Rs 1.25 lakh each on Jasbir Singh and Krishan Lal, and Rs 75,000 on Avtar Singh.

The CBI court’s order concluded that Ram Rahim orchestrated the murder because he suspected Mr Singh’s involvement in circulating the letter that exposed allegations of rape and exploitation.

In May 2024, the Punjab and Haryana High Court overturned the CBI court’s conviction and acquitted all five accused in the Ranjit Singh murder case.

Ram Rahim had appealed his conviction in all the cases against him, including the rape cases and the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatarpati.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s conviction in 2017 for the rape of two women followers led to violence and unrest across Haryana, Punjab, and parts of Delhi. The violence resulted in the deaths of 30 people and injuries to over 250. The Army had to be called in to restore order.

In addition to the rape charges, Ram Rahim was also convicted for the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatarpati, who had extensively reported on the sexual assault allegations against the Dera chief. These convictions resulted in a 20-year prison sentence for the self-styled godman.
 

New Delhi:

Narain Singh Chaura, the man who allegedly has links to the Khalistani terrorist group Babbar Khalsa, was arrested for opening fire at former Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal this morning. He tried to attack Mr Badal while he was serving his penance at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

Sukhbir Singh Badal escaped unhurt as Chaura was overpowered by people present on the spot.

The incident occurred around 9 am shortly after Mr Badal, who was in a wheelchair, had taken the ‘sewadar’s’ place at the gate of the Golden Temple.

Visuals from the spot show Chaura slowly approaching the gate and then taking a gun out of his pocket. A man standing near Mr Badal quickly spotted him and held his hands.

#WATCH | Punjab: Bullets fired at Golden Temple premises in Amritsar where SAD leaders, including party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, are offering ‘seva’ under the religious punishments pronounced for them by Sri Akal Takht Sahib, on 2nd December.

Details awaited. pic.twitter.com/CFQaoiqLkx

— ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2024

The gun goes off but narrowly misses Mr Badal and others near him and hits the wall.

Who Is Narain Singh Chaura

Narain Singh Chaura is a resident of a village called Chaura in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district, some 60 kilometres from Golden Temple.

He was born on April 4, 1956, to Chanam Singh and Gurnam Kaur.

According to sources in the security establishment, Chaura is associated with the banned pro-Khalistan group Babbar Khalsa or Babbar Khalsa International.

The 68-year-old is also considered the mastermind of Chandigarh’s 2004 Burail jailbreak case in which four inmates escaped prison after digging a 104-foot tunnel. These four prisoners were Babbar Khalsa chief Jagtar Singh Hawara, former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh’s assassins Paramjit Singh Bheora and Jagtar Singh Tara and a murder convict Devi Singh.

Chaura was arrested in 2013 in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. He was released on bail five years later.

Sukhbir Singh Badal Serving Punishment At Golden Temple

Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday started his penance by serving the religious punishment given to him by the highest temporal body of Sikhs in a sacrilege case.

The Akali Dal chief sat in a wheelchair at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, wearing a plaque around his neck and holding a spear, visuals showed.

Mr Badal has been sentenced by the Akal Takht to perform as a ‘sewadar’ and given clean duty in the kitchen and toilet at several gurdwaras, including the Golden Temple, for favouring Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in the 2015 sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib.

Chandigarh:

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim, convicted in a rape case and serving a 20-year jail term, will get a 20-day parole ahead of the assembly elections in Haryana. Ram Rahim may be released from jail tomorrow morning. This would be his tenth parole in the last two years
Sources said the Haryana government had once again granted him parole after getting approval from the Election Commission.

Ram Rahim was convicted in 2017 for raping two of his women disciples at his ashram in Haryana’s Sirsa.

Earlier today, the Congress, flagging his possible release, had written to the Election Commission, contending that his release would be a violation of the Model Code of Conduct that is in place ahead of the election. Over the years, as a local religious leader, he has garnered mass following. 

There is concern that his release ahead of the election is may act as a catalyst in what the party expects to be close fight. The ruling BJP has been in power for a decade and is hoping to win its third consecutive term. 
 

Gurmeet Ram Rahim, chief of Dera Sacha Sauda, was acquitted in a 22-year-old murder case today, with the Punjab and Haryana High Court citing  lapses in investigation and lack of solid evidence against the accused.

The court also listed the areas in which investigation was “tainted and sketchy” — including the weapon used for the murder, ballistic reports, post-mortem report, and polygraph test which did not bear out the prosecution claims in the murder of former sect manager Ranjit Singh.

Influenced by media glare, the investigating officer(s) “carried out a tainted and sketchy investigation into the crime,” said the bench of Justices Sureshwar Thakur and Lalit Batra.

The case “is a stark portrayal of the necessity of Courts of law making an incisive and objective analyses of the evidence as exist on record,” the judges said.

Ram Rahim is serving a 20-year-sentence for raping two of his disciples and has a 16-year-old murder case against him as well.

Ranjit Singh was killed allegedly for his suspected role in the circulation of an anonymous letter, which said how women were being sexually exploited by Ram Rahim at the Dera headquarters.

Ram Rahim, who was accused of conspiracy, and four others were convicted by a CBI court in Panchkula, Haryana, in October 2021 and given life imprisonment. He is currently in jail at Haryana’s Rohtak.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s conviction in 2017 in the rape cases sparked massive violence and arson in parts of Punjab and Haryana. Thirty people died, more than 250 were injured and the Army had to be called in.

Chandigarh:

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim was today acquitted by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in the murder case of a former Dera official. Ranjit Singh, former manager of the Dera, was murdered in 2002. A CBI court convicted Ram Rahim and four others in 2021 and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The 56-year-old Dera chief had challenged this conviction in the high court.

The controversial Dera chief is in jail after being convicted of raping two sadhvis at the dera and in the murder case of journalist Ram Chander Prajapati, who had reported extensively on the sexual assault allegations against the influential Dera chief.

The Dera Sacha Sauda, the headquarters of which is located in Haryana’s Sirsa, had made headlines after shocking allegations of sexual assault surfaced against Gurmeet Ram Rahim and the CBI started investigating the matter. In 2014, a decade after the probe began, the Dera chief claimed he was impotent, but the court rejected this. Dramatic scenes played out as a massive crowd of supporters clashed with cops in the aftermath of the conviction.