3 more dera followers turn police witnesses
PANCHKULA : Three more Dera Sacha Ssauda followers have turned police witnesses in last year’s violence in Panchkula and Sirsa after the sect head’s conviction in rape cases, the supplementary challan the cops filed recently reveals.
Dera head Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s adopted daughter Honeypreet among others is accused in the case.
The three said they got calls from the dera headquarters in Sirsa to transport kerosene, acid and sticks to Panchkula to create unrest ahead of the CBI court’s verdict on August 25.
UshaKumar,along-timedera functionary from Ratia in Fatehabad district, said dera chairperson Vipassana called her to stock arsenal in vehicles carrying dera followers to Panchkula.
Usha claimed that she passed on the message to dera’s Ratia block in-charge Pyare Lal who was tasked with arranging all logistics.
She claimed to have stayed back home due to fear, her statement corroborates the police theory thatthe dera men came to Panchkula well-prepared and attacked security forces to free the dera chief after his conviction. At least 36 dera followers were killed in clashes with security forces in the city that day.
To corroborate her statement, the police roped in as a witness Pyare Lal who claimed to have got calls from her and the dera to send maximum crowd to Panchkula.
He confessed to have sent people in vehicles arranged by him and his supporters, but chose not to send arsenal.
Karamvir Singh, a carpenter from Jind, has said in his testimony that he was part of the crowd in Panchkula’s Sector 5 that day and saw the dera chief’s close aides Aditya Insan and Pawan Insan instigating the crowd after the court held Ram Rahim guilty of rape.
TOTAL WITNESSES 99
With this, the number of police witnesses in the case has reached 99. In the first copy of the challan, the police had named 50 witnesses, including the dera chief’s gunman, two followers and three journalists. In the supplementary challan filed on January 11, 49 more witnesses, including these three dera followers, have been added.
Now, the number of accused against whom the challan has been filed is 25. The court of additional sessions judge will hear the petition of framing charges against them.