Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, a convict serving a 20-year jail term for the rape of two women disciples, has been granted a 50-day parole. He is lodged in Sunaria prison in Rohtak district, Haryana.
Previously, he was granted a 21-day parole in November 2023. He was provided parole thrice last year.
Ram Rahim, 56, enjoys significant popularity in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh. He has been released on parole on multiple occasions for various reasons, including his request to visit his ailing mother and for his birthday.
Prior to this, the Dera chief had been released from Sunaria jail on a 30-day parole starting July 20, 2023. Preceding this, he had been granted a 40-day parole in January and another 40-day parole in October 2022. Before the October parole, he had been released on a month-long parole in June of the same year. Additionally, he was given a three-week furlough starting February 7, 2022, according to news agency PTI.
In 2021, the Dera chief, along with four others, was convicted of conspiring to murder Ranjit Singh, a Dera manager. Furthermore, in 2019, the Dera chief and three others were convicted of the murder of a journalist that occurred more than 16 years ago.
Harjinder Singh Dhami, the president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, strongly opposed the Haryana government’s decision to grant a 21-day furlough to the Dera chief, citing his convictions for serious crimes such as rape and murder. Dhami expressed concern that this decision was creating an atmosphere of mistrust within the Sikh community.
He was quoted by PTI stating that the Dera chief had been repeatedly granted temporary release from jail, and the government was not heeding the voices raised by the Sikh community for the release of Sikh prisoners.
In 2017, the Dera chief was sentenced to 20 years in prison for allegedly raping two women disciples.