Gurmeet Ram Rahim Granted 40-Day Parole, Reaches Sect's Ashram In UP's Barnawa

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Granted 40-Day Parole, Reaches Sect’s Ashram In UP’s Barnawa- Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is currently serving a 20-year jail term for rape, has been granted 40-day parole by the Punjab and Haryana High Court to attend to his ailing mother. The Dera chief had filed a petition in this regard last week, following which the High Court issued notices to the Haryana and Punjab governments. However, sources say that the Dera chief is not likely to be released from prison any time soon as the state governments are yet to respond to the High Court’s notice.

On August 28, 2017, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted of rape by a special CBI court in Panchkula, Haryana. He was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and fined ₹30 lakh (US$43,000). The charges against him were framed under Sections 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code.

It is not clear how Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the disgraced guru and self-styled godman, reached the Barnawa ashram of his Dera Sacha Sauda sect in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday morning.

The Dera chief had been serving a 20-year prison sentence at Rohtak’s Sunaria Jail since August 28, 2017, when he was convicted of raping two of his female followers.

On Tuesday evening, the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him parole for 10 days on “humanitarian grounds” to enable him to attend to his ailing mother at the Barnawa ashram.

However, it is not known how he managed to travel from Rohtak to Barnawa, some 200 km away, given that he is a high-security prisoner and is not allowed to leave Haryana without prior permission from the state government.

The Punjab and Haryana police are now investigating how Singh managed to reach Barnawa without being detected.

The sect’s ashram in UP’s Barnawa is a large and well-organized facility that provides its members with a variety of services and amenities. These include a spacious and clean living area, plenty of food and water, a medical clinic, and a school. The sect also has its own security force to keep members safe and to protect the property.

During his parole, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh will be required to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and will be subject to a curfew. He will not be allowed to leave Barnawa or contact any of his co-conspirators in the case.

The Dera chief has been convicted of rape and is currently serving a 20-year jail sentence. He was recently granted parole for 40 days so that he could attend to some personal matters. However, many people are against this decision as they believe that the Dera chief is using his position of power to avoid punishment.