Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, convicted in rape and murder cases, gets one-month parole

The Haryana government has granted parole for a month to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is lodged in jail on rape and murder charges.

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New Delhi: Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who has been convicted in rape and murder cases, was granted parole for a month on Friday (June 17) by the BJP-led Haryana government, ANI reported. Earlier in February, Singh received a three weeks furlough. In parole, a prisoner is released either temporarily for a special purpose or completely before the expiry of a sentence, on the promise of good behaviour, while furlough is a short-term temporary release of convicts from prison. Notably, Singh has been granted parole for the first time since his conviction, as per IANS. Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh holds a large following in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. He has been released from Haryana’s Sunaria jail four times for various reasons earlier, including meeting his ailing mother. 

Defending the decision to grant the Dera chief one-month parole, an official said this is being done as per the jail manual. As per IANS, Singh will stay in Barnawa in Baghpath during his parole.

Earlier in February ahead of the Punjab Assembly election, the Dera chief was provided Z-plus security cover during his furlough owing to the "high threat perception" to his life from "pro-Khalistan" groups, an official said. 

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is serving a 20-year jail term in the rape case of two of his women disciples. He was convicted in August 2017 by a Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court in Panchkula and has been in Haryana's Sunaria jail since then. 

In October last year, a special CBI in Panchkula had convicted the self-styled jailed godman and four other accused in the murder of former Dera manager Ranjit Singh. 

In 2019, the Dera Sacha Sauda chief and three others were pronounced guilty in connection with the murder of journalist Ramchandra Chhatrapati. Chhatrapati had published an anonymous letter about the sexual exploitation of women by Ram Rahim Singh at his ashram.

(With agency inputs)