Dera Sacha Sauda Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Convicted In Rape Case

A Central Bureau of Investigation court in Panchkula today (25 August) found Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh guilty in a rape case. He now faces up to seven years in jail.

Singh was accused of repeatedly raping a former follower inside the Dera campus near Sirsa in Haryana in 1999. An FIR was registered in 2002.

Singh and the management of the sect have denied the allegations all throughout.

Punjab and Haryana have been put on high alert after Singh’s followers threatened violence. Uttar Pradesh has reportedly sealed its borders with Haryana to prevent escalation of violence, reports Dainik Jagran.

A curfew has been imposed in Panchkula, Haryana, following instances of violence.

Ahead of the court’s ruling, all rail services to Jammu were suspended, reports The Hindu.

Singh’s followers reportedly vandalised vans belonging to private news channels. The centre has sent in 167 companies of the Central Reserve Police Force at the request of the Haryana government.