An anonymous letter with rape allegations started it all in 2002

It was an anonymous letter in 2002, addressed to then Prime Minister Atal Bihar Vajpayee and host of other top institutions, including Punjab and Haryana high court, that triggered investigations into the rape charges against Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.

Nearly 15 years on, the verdict in the case against him will be out on Friday, even as the dera chief and his supporters have continued to question the authenticity of the letter.

No one so far knows the author of the letter. The threepage letter typed in Hindi, a copy of which is in possession of HT, narrates the ordeal of a dera sadhvi (woman follower) who charged Ram Rahim with sexual exploitation of sadhvis.

The letter, which was received by the high court by post on May 5, was also addressed to Union home ministry, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and National Human Rights Commission seeking intervention.

While most of the recipients did not react, the high court took cognisance and directed the then district and sessions judge in Sirsa, MS Sular, to conduct an inquiry into the matter.

In his report, Sular did not rule the possibility of such acts in dera but said that nobody there was prepared to speak about the sexual abuse, and there was no way to access the hostel where sadhvis were living, without permission from Gurmeet Ram Rahim or dera authorities.

As the judge recommended that the matter be investigated through a central agency, the high court converted the complaint into a criminal petition, and passed an order directing CBI to investigate the allegations. CBI Chandigarh registered a case on December 12, 2002 and began formal investigations.

During the course of the investigation, CBI faced many legal challenges, including stay orders on conducting a probe for one and half years.

Finally, they managed to trace two victims and file a chargesheet against the dera chief in 2007 in the special CBI court, which was then in Ambala district courts before being shifted to Panchkula.