Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday acquitted Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the murder case of former Dera manager Ranjit Singh. Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted in 2021 by a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court.
Division bench comprising Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Lalit Batra of the high court passed these orders while allowing an appeal filed by Dera chief and four others against their conviction.
"The high court has acquitted him and four others in the Ranjit Singh murder case," Dera chief's lawyer Jitender Khurana said on Tuesday.
Apart from the murder of Dera manager Ranjit Singh, Gurmeet Ram Rahim was convicted by a special CBI court in Panchkula in rape and another murder case related to the killing of journalist Ram Chander Chhatarpati.
He had challenged all the convictions before the Punjab and Haryana high court.
It is alleged that former Dera manager Ranjit Singh was shot dead in 2002 on the directions of the Dera chief. CBI had alleged Ranjit Singh's murder was linked to his suspected role in the circulation of an anonymous letter, which narrated how women were being sexually exploited by the dera head.
On October 18, 2021, the special CBI court in Panchkula had awarded life imprisonment to Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim and four others - Avtar Singh, Krishan Lal, Jasbir Singh and Sabdil Singh.
One of the accused had died during the trial. The CBI judge had also slapped a fine of Rs 31 lakh on dera chief, Rs 1.50 lakh on Sabdil, Rs 1.25 lakh each on Jasbir and Krishan and Rs 75,000 on Avtar.
In its detailed verdict, the CBI court Panchkula had held that there is no manner of doubt to the fact that it was Dera Chief, who was feeling aggrieved by the circulation of the anonymous letter in question wherein severe allegations of sexual exploitation of sadhvis of Dera have been levelled against him only, a TOI report mentioned.
The Sirsa-headquartered sect chief is serving a 20-year jail term for raping two of his disciples and is currently lodged in Sunaria jail in Rohtak. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2017.
