After the sentencing of the controversial Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, another self-styled god man, Rampal Dass, is awaiting court order in criminal cases against him today.
A Hisar court is expected to pronounce the verdict against the engineer-turned self-styled godman on Tuesday in connection with two cases registered against him and his followers.
Rampal, 67, the head of Satlok Ashram in Barwala, is accused of ordering his supporters to open fire on villagers in Rohtak, killing one person and injuring several others. Rampal was arrested in 2014, which was preceded by a violence a his Hisar ashram.Rampal faces charges of sedition, murder, criminal conspiracy and detaining people illegally in his fortress as a shield against police who tried to ferret him out after he ignored summons from court to appear before it 43 times..
Like in the case of Ram Rahim, who was convicted of rape and sentenced to 20 years in jail, the followers of Rampal have a history of going on a rampage. There was a tense stand-off between the police and Rampal’s followers in November 2014 when the police tried to arrest him.
Tens of thousands of his followers violently attempted to stop police and paramilitary personnel from arresting him. The arrest warrant against him was issued after he repeatedly ignored court summons. It was only after a week-long stand-off and the deaths of six people that the police could finally arrest him.
Amid tight security, the special CBI court in Rohtak on Monday awarded 20 years imprisonment to Baba Rahim for raping two of his female followers. The whole episode of his conviction and sentencing witnessed protests among his followers that left at least 38 people dead and more than 200 injured.
