Dera head gets to see visitors during out-of-jail check-ups
Rohtak SP conveys matter to police highups; slain journalist’s son accuses state government of helping sect chief
CHANDIGARH: The security detail of incarcerated head of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is serving a 20-year sentence, seems to have gone out of line by allowing unauthorised access of visitors including two women to the Dera head during his travels for medical examination.
The deviation not only amounted to compromising the security of a high-risk prisoner but also has raised questions on the conduct of security officials in providing favours to the controversial sect head citing directions from “someone in Chandigarh”.
The matter has been conveyed to the higher police authorities by Rohtak superintendent of police (SP) Rahul Sharma and additional director general of police (ADGP), Rohtak Range, Sandeep Khirwar in separate communications last month.
The two officials have recommended initiation of departmental action against Meham deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Shamsher Dahiya for deliberately allowing lapses. Dahiya was the officer in-charge of the security detail during some of the recent outof-prison visits of Dera head.
Women boarded vehicle en route Rohtak
A few other cops who were part of the Dera chief’s security detail have also flagged the intentional security lapses.
DSP Sajjan Kumar, in a communication to the Rohtak SP, wrote that during a July 13 visit to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, four persons including two women were given unauthorised access to meet the Dera chief on the hospital premises.
Kumar said when he objected to the presence of these persons citing security risks and protocol, he was told by Dahiya that he got a phone call from Chandigarh to facilitate the meeting of the Dera head with these persons.
DSP Kumar said after completion of medical examination
and tests at AIIMS, the Dera chief boarded Dahiya’s vehicle on the way back to Rohtak prison. As per Kumar’s communication, the vehicle with Dera chief on board made multiple unscheduled stops enroute where two women were also allowed to board the vehicle.
Kumar wrote that while Dahiya claimed of getting telephonic directions from Chandigarh to facilitate the access, he felt that it was a mere ploy to mislead his fellow cops.
Director general of police (DGP) PK Agarwal said such incidents amount to serious misconduct and breach of professional ethics. “We are moving the case to state government for placing the errant DSP under suspension and initiation of disciplinary proceedings,” he said.
Threat perception, law and order problem
Considering the threat he faced from Sikh radicals, the Dera head was given the apex Z plus security cover during the Congress rule. In fact, till 2017, when the BJP was in power, he was the only individual in state besides the governor and the chief minister to have the highest protection.
His cover was withdrawn in 2017 after he was convicted and sentenced for 20 years for raping women followers.
“Such deliberate acts of compromising the security of a high-risk prisoner can have serious repercussions. If something goes wrong, such misadventures can snowball into a law-and-order crisis considering the kind of following the Dera head has in Haryana and Punjab. The government is illequipped to handle such situations,” said a former CID official, who had handled the Dera chief’s security paraphernalia.
Govt playing vote-bank politics: Chattrapati
Anshul Chattrapati, son of slain journalist Ram Chander Chattarapati for whose murder the Dera head has also been sentenced for life, said the Dera head being allowed such liberties is a serious matter.
“The state government has a lot to answer. I had written to the chief justice of Punjab and Haryana high court that the Dera head was misusing his political links to obtain paroles one after another thereby nullifying the process of law and mocking the process of natural justice,” he said.
“In May, he was allowed to stay at a farmhouse in Manesar. When he was admitted to a Gurugram hospital, he insisted that his devotee Honeypreet Kaur be allowed to take care of him. How many prisoners in state get such VVIP treatment? The state is lending him a helping hand purely for vote-bank politics,” he added.
Principal media advisor to the Haryana chief minister, Vinod Mehta, however, said the state government has not favoured the Dera head in any way.
“Since he has medical problems which cannot be ignored, the Dera head was taken to Delhi as those tests could only be conducted at AIIMS. The paroles have been granted as per rules, keeping in mind his medical condition,” Mehta said.