‘Ruling has restored our faith in justice’
UPHILL TASK Family members of a woman who was raped by the Dera chief describe the harassment that followed their complaint
KURUKSHETRA: “It took a long time, I had stopped believing in justice,” says a 73-year-old woman, smiling through her tears as she learns about the conviction of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a rape case on Friday. Her daughter was one of the two women raped by the self-styled leader, and her only son was allegedly killed by his followers who suspected him of circulating a letter detailing the sexual exploitation in 2002.
The old woman is the matriarch of a family that dared to take on the dera chief. The family used to be ardent supporters of the 50-year-old convicted leader — the brother was a part of his inner circle — but dissociated themselves soon after learning about the rape.
“This ruling has restored our faith in justice, I only wish papaji was here to see this day,” the brother’s wife says, wiping a tear. She remembers her fatherin-law who was the village chief for 35 years and passed away last year.
She remembers her husband’s dedication to the Dera. “A staunch devotee, he’d even got a room built for the dera chief on the first floor,” she says. Later, her husband regretted wasting the prime years of life at the dera, she recalls. The anonymous letter led the Dera to suspect the brother, following which emissaries of Singh allegedly threatened him.
Two months later on July 10, he was found murdered in the fields.
“So many times, we were followed by vehicles,” says the rape victim’s brother-in-law. Other family members say the police attempted to divide the family by blaming some relatives for the murder.