Alert in Haryana, Punjab ahead of verdict

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 16

Even as the authorities in Haryana and the neighbouring Punjab are bracing up for the special CBI court’s verdict in a case of alleged rape of two ‘sadhvis’ by Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, four key posts in Sirsa, where dera headquarters are situated, have been lying vacant for long.

The dera chief is being tried for two cases of murder, besides a case of alleged rape of two ‘sadhvis’ of his dera in the CBI court at Panchkula.

The last one has reached the stage of finality and the CBI court can deliver its verdict anytime now.

“Arguments of prosecution as well as the defence had already been completed. Today, we concluded our rebuttal arguments. Now, the case is fixed for submission of case laws (precedents) tomorrow. After that, the case will be at the stage of judgment and it is up to the court now when to deliver the verdict,” said HPS Verma, counsel for the CBI in the case.

Sources said that the authorities in Punjab and Haryana today put the police on alert ahead of a special CBI court’s verdict in the case.

The Tribune has learnt that the police in both the states have been asked by the Centre to be in readiness for the situation if the CBI court’s verdict comes against the dera chief.

The dera chief has a large number of followers in the two states and in the region and if the verdict goes against him, there is an apprehension of law and order problem.

Meanwhile, Sirsa district does not have Superintendent of Police (SP) for 14 days and the posts of SDMs in Kalanwali, Dabwali and Ellenabad, all sensitive subdivisions in view of the dera following, are lying vacant for over one month.

Satender Kumar Gupta, SP, was transferred from Sirsa to Recruits Training Command, Bhondsi, on August 2 when he delayed suspension of two cops “guilty” of not allowing BJP state president Subhash Barala’s PA on Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s stage in Sirsa on July 31.

The posts of SDMs are lying vacant for over a month now.

SK Garg Narwana, counsel for Ram Rahim, today submitted before the court that the women recorded their statements regarding rape after more than six years of the alleged incident. “In the previous statements of the victims in 2003, they did not make rape allegations. It is only after a criminal complaint was filed against the investigating officer that the statements were procured,” he said.

On the other hand, the CBI counsel said the the case was relying on statements of the victims and they did not have any previous enmity with the dera chief. “All witnesses stood by their statements. None of them turned hostile in the case. It is a watertight case,” he said.

Charges against Ram Rahim

• In 2002, anonymous letters regarding sexual exploitation of women followers at Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa, were sent to then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court
• Following an inquiry by the then District and Sessions Judge of Sirsa, who said that sexual exploitation couldn’t be ruled out, the HC had handed over the case to the CBI on September 24, 2002
• The chargesheet was filed on July 30, 2007
• During his statement in 2014, Ram Rahim had told the court, “I am innocent. I have not raped anyone.”