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.
Agnivesh said Sant Gurmit Ram Raheem Singh should tender an 'open hearted apology' if the situation is to improve in Punjab and other states.
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
According to official sources in Chandigarh, the six persons, all belonging to Sikh community, received minor injuries on their legs after the shooting incident in Mallewala village, about 10 km from Sirsa, and were treated in a local hospital.
The government had given the nod for his arrest.
The Sikh high priests have called for a Punjab bandh on May 22.
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 case a shopkeeper does not have any change at his disposal if a customer pays Rs 100 for an item that costs Rs 70, the latter may have to make do with three plastic tokens of Rs 10 value each .
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.
Earlier, the CBI filed a "status report" in the court of Justices Adesh Kumar Goel and Ajay Lamba about the three cases in compliance of the high court's order.
Sirsa Deputy Commissioner Yudhvir Singh said that preliminary reports indicated that at the function, someone spread a rumour about the presence of a snake that led to devotees running helter-skelter leading to the stampede.
Leaders have appealed to the participants to maintain peace and not to raise any kind of slogans.
Bareta, who was one of the accused in the incidents related to the desecration of a religious text in Faridkot in 2015, was declared a proclaimed offender.
The followers, owing allegiance to the 'Sant Samaj', an umbrella organisation of various Sikh bodies, congregated at a shrine at Fatehgarh Sahib as police took precautionary measures to prevent any untoward incidents.
The move came days after the Supreme Court vacated the stay imposed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the trial in three sacrilege cases.
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.
Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was forced to leave Mysore for security reasons in the early hours of Monday, following protests from the Sikh community.Police sources said that Singh, who was shifted to Bangalore under tight security, left for Delhi by the early morning flight.There are widespread protests all over the country by the Sikh community, demanding Singh's arrest, after his security guards killed one person in Mumbai and fired at Sikh protest groups
Congress leader sought stern action against the BJP MP.
Resenting the filing of a murder case against the Dera Sacha Sauda head by the CBI, the sect supporters on Saturday went on a rampage setting ablaze four trains and around 37 vehicles, including 27 buses, and vandalized property in several places in Punjab and Haryana.
The decision has been taken to maintain peace in the area in wake of the Dera stand-off with Sikhs following the recent blasphemous act of Dera head Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh.
A Bench comprising Justice Arijit Pasayat and Justice D K Jain said there was no urgency in the matter for early hearing.
Top Sikh clerics on Tuesday met to decide the future course of action against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the wake of an apology tendered by him for dressing like Guru Gobind Singh.
Three suspected shooters were nabbed in Punjab's Patiala district early on Friday in connection with the killing of a Dera Sacha Sauda follower a day ago, the police said.
Who controls the government in Punjab?
Swami Agnivesh speaks about the Dera-Sikh standoff, which he is attempting to resolve.
The state government terminated the services of DAG Gurdas Salwara for carrying the bag of rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim.
The cases relate to the murder of a Sirsa-based journalist Ram Chander Chatterpatti and Dera Manager Ranjit Singh besides other related cases.
Supporters of Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda sect blocked rail and road traffic at various places in Punjab for the second day on Sunday, demanding that cinema halls screen sect leader Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh's film MSG-2.
The release of the movie was cleared by the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal.
The special court had convicted them on Friday in the murder case of a Dera manager, Ranjit Singh.
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.
Ram Chander Chhatrapati, who ran a local daily 'Poora Sacch', was shot a few months after he published an anonymous letter narrating how women were being sexually exploited by Singh at the Dera headquarters in Sirsa.
Haryana Jail Minister Ranjit Singh Chautala also said, "Gurmeet Ram Rahim is like every other prisoner here and he also has his fundamental rights."
Comedian Kiku Sharda who features in the hit television show Comedy Nights With Kapil has been arrested for imitating self-styled spiritual guru Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, according to news agency ANI.
Singh said he took stock of the situation in Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh in the wake of violence following conviction of the Dera chief.
said the CBI verdict has been challenged on several grounds. "One of the grounds was that there was a delay of more than six years in recording the statements of the women (victims) by the CBI after the incident," the defence counsel said.
Dera Sacha Sauda chief and rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh walked out of the Sunaria jail in Haryana's Rohtak district on Thursday after he was granted a 30-day parole.
The CM also said the damage caused to some media personnel's equipment during the violence will be taken care of the government.
Various Sikh leaders on Friday hailed the decision of Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikh religion, which annulled its edict of pardoning Dera Sacha Sauda Sect Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
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