Chandigarh, March 7
Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh has received major relief in the murder case of Sirsa-based journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has acquitted Ram Rahim in the case, while upholding the convictions of the other three accused — Kuldeep, Nirmal and Krishan Lal.
Earlier, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court had convicted all the accused and sentenced them to life imprisonment. However, the High Court has now modified that decision by acquitting Ram Rahim while maintaining the sentences of the remaining three convicts.
It is noteworthy that journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati from Sirsa was shot outside his house on October 24, 2002, and later succumbed to his injuries on November 21, 2002. In August 2002, an anonymous letter had surfaced alleging sexual exploitation and rape of women inside the Dera Sacha Sauda. Chhatrapati had published the letter in his newspaper.
Following a petition filed in 2003 by Chhatrapati’s son Anshul Chhatrapati, the Punjab and Haryana High Court handed over the investigation to the CBI. Acting on the court’s directions, the CBI registered an FIR in November 2003. In 2004, Dera Sacha Sauda approached the Supreme Court of India seeking to halt the investigation, but the petition was dismissed.
The trial continued for nearly 16 years in a special CBI court in Panchkula. The CBI filed its chargesheet in 2018–2019, describing the case as a planned conspiracy. The court convicted Gurmeet Ram Rahim, Kuldeep Singh, Nirmal Singh and Krishan Lal.
Ram Rahim had filed an appeal against the 2019 verdict, and the High Court has now acquitted him in the case. However, he is currently serving a 20-year sentence in a rape case involving two women disciples and is lodged in Sunaria Jail in Rohtak.
After hearing appeals filed by the accused against the special CBI court’s decision, the High Court delivered its verdict. The court said that the prosecution’s evidence was insufficient to prove Ram Rahim’s involvement in the alleged criminal conspiracy, and therefore acquitted him. However, it found the evidence against Kuldeep, Nirmal and Krishan Lal sufficient and upheld their life imprisonment sentences.
During the hearing, both the defense and the CBI presented extensive arguments. After examining the evidence on record, witness statements and surrounding circumstances, the court delivered its decision.
The High Court’s ruling has once again sparked widespread discussion in legal and social circles.
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