A special Central Bureau of Investigation court on Saturday directed Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to be present on August 23 to hear formal framing of charges against him in connection with a 1999 case involving the rape of a female disciple.Singh was not present in the court today owing to ill health, skipping a second successive appearance. The Dera chief is the lone accused in the case of alleged sexual exploitation involving a female sect member.
"Police have sent an application to the government seeking sanction to prosecute the Dera head," Bhatinda police chief Naunihal Singh told PTI over phone in Chandigarh on Saturday.
An image of Swami Agnivesh with the Sikh clergy.
Abhijit Bhagat, a trustee and vice-chairman of the Dera, moved a special leave petition before apex court that was heard by a bench comprising Justice Arijit Pasayat and Justice D K Jain.
Police on Monday lathicharged Sikh protestors who tried to take out a procession defying prohibitory orders to protest against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's alleged insult to tenth Sikh Guru Gobind Singh.
In a game that had its moments, India had a great chance of scoring from a free kick after Gurkirat Singh was fouled near the Bangladesh box.
A car, part of the cavalcade of Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, went up in flames in Haryana's Karnal district on Saturday. The driver of the car lost control after its engine developed trouble near village Manakmajra. Suddenly there was a loud explosion and the car went up in flames, police said. Two people have been rounded up in connection with the incident, police said, adding it was too early to conclude whether it was an accident or an attack
Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh has apologised for dressing up like Guru Gobind Singh.
Known for his flashy outfits, the Dera chief was attired in a white kurta-pyjama with matching white shoes as the judge sentenced him to 20 years in jail.
A local court on Thursday extended till October 15 the interim bail given to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh in three cases of murder and sexual harassment
One person was killed on Friday in firing by a bodyguard of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Ram Rahim Singh, which is at loggerheads with the Sikh clergy, during clashes between Sikhs and supporters of the group in a mall in a north-east Mumbai suburb, police said. The clashes occurred during a visit by Singh in the Nirmal Lifestyles mall in suburban Mulund late on Friday evening, they said.
Emerging from a meeting of Akal Takht in Amritsar, jathedar Joginder Singh Vedanti told reporters that "the fresh note received from Dera head neither accepts his sin nor promises not to repeat such act again."
The Sikh high priests have called for a Punjab bandh on May 22.
The action came a day after the Dera Sacha Sauda expressed regret over "the chain of events" leading to violence in Punjab and said its head never intended to imitate Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru.
The matter was raised by Dr Rattan Singh, member of Lok Sabha from Tarn Taran and Saranjit Singh Dhillon, who alleged that the Congress party was behind engineering violence against the Akalis.
The losses caused to property due to violence and arson by the followers of self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh will be recovered from Dera Sacha Sauda, the Punjab and Haryana high court ruled on Fridayy, according to a senior government lawyer.
The Dera head had been accused by the CBI of two murders -- Dera manager Ranjit Singh and scribe Ram Chander Chattarapati -- besides rape of his disciple.
"I thought that rediff.com was only a portal and had nothing to do with news," he said.
Talking about the earlier two apologies sent by the Dera Sacha Sauda, Vedanti described them as mere 'press notes' and alleged the language used in the text was not proper.
The court of judicial magistrate first class Rahul Garg also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 each on Prithi Singh a resident of Baghapurana and Amardeep Singh and Mithu Singh, both residents of Malke village.
The Dera chief was returning from Rajasthan when his vehicle was attacked, but he escaped unhurt, a senior official said.
Leaders have appealed to the participants to maintain peace and not to raise any kind of slogans.
Train services in Punjab were suspended on Wednesday following blocking of tracks at several places by members of the Sikh community, who are demanding the arrest of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh in the wake of the Mumbai firing incident.The 'rail roko' call given by Damdami Taksal, Shiromani Akali Dal and certain radical Sikh organisations asked the protesters to remain peaceful.
'As long as there is misery, as long as people let themselves be exploited by rogues, this will continue.'
The Punjab government on Saturday decided to put a ban on the screening of the controversial movie 'Messenger of God' featuring Dera Sacha Sauda Chief Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh, in apprehension of breach of peace.
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The court also directed that Singh shall remain present and join investigations as and when required in future and adjourned the matter to September 19.
The action committee of the Sirsa-based sect, in a letter to Kalam, also demanded registration of case against those who are allegedly committing excesses on its followers.
The court, however, directed the police to seek the Punjab government's permission before arresting the Sirsa-based Dera head.
A special CBI team, escorted by heavily armed police, reached the Dera headquarters in Sirsa on Saturday morning and was made to wait for over three hours before the notice could be served to the Dera chief in his gufa (cave), CBI sources said.
The government had given the nod for his arrest.
Acting on the court's directive, the Punjab government had on Wednesday given the go-ahead for the arrest and prosecution of Dera Sacha Sauda head.
All political parties have appeal for peace and harmony.
If we accept that there is a challenge in Punjab today, any realistic progress can only be made if the rest of the country, especially the government and the ruling party, engage with this sense of grievance, points out Shekhar Gupta
Who controls the government in Punjab?
The Dera had approached the apex court last Friday after the Akal Takht, the highest religious body of Sikhs, served an ultimatum to the Punjab government to close down all Deras in the state by May 27.
The cases relate to the murder of a Sirsa-based journalist Ram Chander Chatterpatti and Dera Manager Ranjit Singh besides other related cases.
As the Sikh's highest temporal seat gave an ultimatum to the Punjab government to close down the Deras by May 27, it rejected the regret expressed by Dera head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
While 30 of them were suspended for the remainder of the Winter Session, three were suspended pending the report of the Privileges Committee.
'He is still learning his craft. But he is learning quickly and will be a real handful in years to come.'
