Court allows Haryana Police to conduct raid at Dera headquarters under retd judge's supervision

PTI photo

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday allowed the Haryana police to search the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters in Sirsa and appointed retired judge KS Pawar as a court commissioner to carry out the operation under his supervision.

The court commissioner will be required to conduct a search at the Dera after which he will submit a report to the High Court in a sealed cover.

Sources said the police has prepared a SWAT team and a bomb squad in Sirsa. The aim is to sanitise Dera headquarters and ensure no illegal activities are carried out in the premises

On Monday, the Haryana Police conducted recovered a huge cache of ultra-modern arms and ammunition from the Dera headquarters in Sirsa. 

Sirsa town is home to the sprawling Dera headquarters where the sect's followers had gathered in large numbers ahead of Ram Rahim's conviction.

The Sirsa ashram was at the centre of the controversy following self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim's conviction in a rape case. After his conviction a number of other incidents, including recovery of a cache of arms and ammunition from the Dera Sect.

The developments come 10 days after Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was sentenced to 20 years in jail in two rape cases. 

His conviction by a court in Haryana's Panchkula on August 25 was followed by violent protests by his disciples that killed at least 38 people.