Dera encroached 3-acre land in Puri

The Dera Sacha Sauda Ashram of its now jailed chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh at Beleswarpatna on the outskirts of Odisha’s pilgrim town Puri is found to have encroached three acres of government land.

The matter came to light on Wednesday after a fivemember team of state revenue department officials headed by the local tehsildar conducted measurement of the property for two days on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sources said, the team found that the ashram stands on seven acres of land out of which four acres has been purchased in the name of the ashram from a private individual and the remaining three acres is government land which has been encroached. The tehsildar will be submitting a report to the district collector in this regard. The measurement exercise was undertaken after locals complained about the encroachment of government land by the ashram.

The locals have complained of the encroachment of government land by the ashram after sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted by a CBI court on Friday for raping two female disciples in 1999. Revenue minister Maheswar Mohanty had ordered an inquiry into the encroachment after members of Puri Sachetana Nagarika Mancha on Friday gathered outside the ashram and raised slogans.