HC admits dera chief’s plea against rape case conviction

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday admitted an appeal filed by Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, challenging his 20-year jail term, in two rape cases, for hearing. However, high court declined to stay the fine imposed on him by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court, Panchkula, and asked him to deposit the same in trial court within two months.

The division bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Sudhir Mittal rejected the argument of Ram Rahim that since he has “renounced the world” and his properties have been attached, he won’t be able to pay up. The court directed him to pay Rs 30 lakh amount, which include fine as well as compensation to both the victims, to trial court. The amount would be kept in a nationalized bank till the pendency of appeal by trial court.

The court also admitted the appeals filed by two rape victims in this case, seeking life imprisonment for Ram Rahim and sought response from CBI on victims’ pleas as well as Ram Rahim’s appeal. No date has been fixed for hearing for now, it would be taken up by its turn of filing.

Ram Rahim Singh had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court on September 25, challenging his conviction. He had argued that there were serious and material “contradictions and omissions” in the testimony of the prosecution witnesses. He had also argued that there was no complainant against him and it was an anonymous complaint of which identity remained unknown. He had also argued that the victim after more than 6 years had got their statements recorded before the CBI for the alleged offences of 1999.

Ram Rahim was convicted by the special CBI court on August 25. Following conviction, in violence in Punjab and Haryana 41 people had died.

The case was registered after in April 2002, an anonymous letter was written to the then Prime minister of India, Chief justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court among others, complaining about alleged sexual exploitation of woman followers at Dera. It was in September 2002 the high court had ordered CBI probe.