Anything can happen now: Followers ‘Will appeal for peace, but cannot control emotions’
‘There are 7 crore of us; premis are restless, and they are having sleepless nights,’ warns dera spokesman Aditya Insan, accusing state authorities of bringing matters to a head
SIRSA:A spectre of violence looms large over the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters, located a few kilometres away from Sirsa city.
Even as thousands of devotees — known as premis — spent Wednesday night sleeping on its premises, several others kept vigil on the road leading to Begu village. With only a day to go for a special CBI court in Panchkula to pronounce the verdict in a rape case involving dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the general mood was that of anger and anxiety.
Many followers at the headquarters remained awake, huddling in groups to discuss the case and its possible fallouts. The situation may look calm now, one of them said, but “anything can happen” if their spiritual leader is indicted.
“There are seven crore of us here. The premis are restless, and they are having sleepless nights,” warned dera spokesman Aditya Insan, accusing the state — including police officers who made “insensitive statements” — of bringing matters to a head.
Hari Chand, a devotee from the nearby Begu village, said many among them were not happy with the manner in which the media had handled their leader’s case. “But the outcry can’t be stopped now. We are pained,” he said.
Back in the city, people discussed the possibility of a curfew being imposed (that was done at 10pm eventually). Though schools and colleges remained shut, provision stores and commercial establishments opened their doors for business.
Gratitude is the primary sentiment that makes the dera chief’s followers defend him. “The government should be ashamed of the way it has been harassing our Guruji, who works so hard for us,” said Phool Chand from another village in Sirsa, referring to the 400-bed hospital, IT school and skill workshop established by the leader on the premises. “We were once paupers. But today, we have everything from jobs to money, vehicles and farmland all because of him.”
“We reached Panchkula in lakhs,” another devotee from Ludhiana said, adding that he and his comrades will wait for the dera chief’s directions before taking any action. At present, they are busy trying to obtain updates from phone calls and TV news channels.
So, is this just the calm before the storm? Raj Dulara Insan, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, claimed it could well be the case. “Have you never seen God? We meet our God here at the dera every day,” he said.
“We know that all the cases against him are fake,” said another follower on the condition of anonymity. “But if they hold him guilty, it will turn into a do-or-die situation.”
As many as three premis had committed suicide purportedly in protest through 2011, when the special CBI court instructed the Dera Sacha Sauda chief to appear before it every day.
Superintendent of police Ashwin Shenvi said law-enforcement agencies were leaving no stone unturned to prevent the occurrence of untoward incidents. BATHINDA: A day ahead of the August 25 verdict in a rape case on Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the sect’s Punjab headquarters in-charge said on Thursday, “We will appeal to our followers to keep calm in case of an adverse verdict, but we can’t control their emotions.”
Speaking at Salabatpura centre of the dera near Bathinda — 100 km from main HQ Sirsa in Haryana — Jora Singh said the biggest challenge is the emotions of followers and “everybody, including the government, is aware of this”. Some dera followers have been gathering at Salabatpura too, and plan to throng the place on Friday. There are already thousands of them in Haryana’s Panchkula, next to Chandigarh, where a CBI court is to deliver its judgment in the 15-year-old case of two sadhvis (female followers) who have accused the dera head of sexual exploitation. The dera has following concentrated in the interstate border region of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.
On security arrangements by the Punjab government, Jora said, “Some anti-social elements want to defame the dera, and the government arrangements are to deal only with those elements. That’s the government's duty.”
About the presence of few followers at Salabatpura on Thursday, he said, “We are avoiding a big gathering here on Friday, but followers will come which we can't stop . We will hold naam charcha (prayers).”
The dera head has not entered Punjab since 2007 when violent clashes were witnessed between Sikhs and teh dera’s devotees after he allegedly dressed up as the tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. There was talk of his holding sermons in Punjab — at Salabatpura — now, but that’s on hold in light of the case verdict. Sikh outfits have urged the community to distance itself from the matter, but “be ready for self-defence, if required”.
Meanwhile, amid tight security, Bathinda district remained calm but tense. Fewer vehicles were plying on the road.
In Faridkot, hundreds of dera followers gathered at the local naam charcha ghar, where some local leaders of the sect were seen threatening the government of “worst law and order situation” in case the chief is convicted.