Chandigarh: Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on Tuesday was released on a 30-day parole, days ahead of Delhi’s February 5 assembly polls and was allowed to visit his ashram in Haryana’s Sirsa district – first time during his parole period since he was arrested in 2017.
For record, the Dera head, 57, is serving his 20-year imprisonment in Sunaria jail in Haryana’s Rohtak district in connection with rape of two of his disciples and murder of a Sirsa-based journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati.
Notably, the Dera head will stay at his Sirsa ashram for the first 10 days and at Barnawa ashram in Baghpat district of Uttar Pradesh for the remaining days – it is for the first time that he has been allowed to visit his Sirsa ashram since his arrest in 2017. It is 12th time that he has been released from the jail on furlough or parole since 2017.
The Dera head who reached his Sirsa ashram around 7.30 am, however, appealed to his followers through a video message not to visit the ashram and that they would get his discourses soon. He was accompanied by his follower Honeypreet.
Pertinently, Dera head’s parole is also being linked to the Delhi assembly polls as the Dera has a score of followers in Delhi, besides Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and other states even as the leaders of several parties including the Haryana’s ruling BJP has been visiting Dera ashrams.
The Dera head’s paroles and furloughs have coincided with elections – last time, he was released on a 20-day parole in October last year – three days ahead of Haryana assembly elections. Earlier, he was given parole in November 2023 ahead of Rajasthan assembly polls, in July 2023 ahead of Haryana panchayat polls, in October 2022 before Haryana’s Adampur assembly by-poll, in June that year before Haryana municipal corporation polls and furlough in February 2022 ahead of Punjab assembly elections.
SGPC OBJECTS TO PAROLE
Meanwhile, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex gurdwara body, on Tuesday strongly objected to the grant of parole to Dera Sirsa head.
Demanding immediate cancellation of the parole granted to the Dera head, the SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami said that the decision shows the dual approach of the government.
The SGPC president held that while the government repeatedly granted furlough and parole to Ram Rahim for its political gains, the Sikh prisoners, detained in various jails of the country for three decades are not being released despite the completion of their sentences and Supreme Court’s directions, which showed the biased attitude of the government.
Dhami held that the BJP government has given Dera head furlough and parole during elections for political gains by turning a blind eye to his heinous crimes in the past and now has again been released ahead of Delhi assembly elections.
However, Ram Rahim’s advocate Jitendra Khurana held that Dera head’s parole was his legal right and should not be linked to politics. He held that as per law, parole can be given for up to 70 days and furlough for 21 days in a year and that Ram Rahim’s parole is entirely within the legal framework. Haryana minister Anil Vij also said that parole is granted as per the laws and not granted to anyone just like that.
