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Rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim gets 21-day furlough, out of prison for 17th time
In August 2017, the Central Bureau of Investigation court found Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh guilty on two counts of rape and sentenced him to 20 years in prison.
Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh
Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is serving a 20-year jail term for raping two of his women disciples, has once again walked out of a prison in Haryana’s Rohtak, this time on a 21-day furlough. A source in Rohtak said Singh left the prison at 6.05 am on Tuesday.
According to sources, he is expected to stay at the Dera headquarters in Sirsa during the furlough period.
Singh has already been released from prison 16 times on either parole or furlough. This will be his 17th release since his conviction in the rape case in August 2017.
Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh first came out of prison on October 24, 2020 (1-day parole); then on May 21, 2021 (12-hour parole to meet his ailing mother); February 7, 2022 (21-day furlough); June 2022 (30-day parole); October 14, 2022 (40-day parole). He was then released on January 21, 2023 (40-day parole); July 20, 2023 (30-day parole); November 21, 2023 (21-day furlough); January 19, 2024 (50-day furlough); August 13, 2024 (21-day furlough); October 2, 2024 (20-day parole); January 28, 2025 (30-day parole); April 9 2025 (21-day furlough) and August 5, 2025 (40-day parole).
In August 2017, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court found him guilty on two counts of rape and sentenced him to 20 years in prison — consecutive convictions of 10 years rigorous imprisonment. The court also ordered him to pay a fine of Rs. 15 lakh to each victim.
Reacting to the conviction, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s followers went on a rampage and entered into a fierce clash with the armed forces. The confrontation resulted in the deaths of over 40 people in Panchkula and Sirsa. The Dera chief was airlifted in a chopper from Panchkula and taken to Rohtak’s Sunaria prison.
In March this year, the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Ram Rahim Singh in the high-profile murder of a journalist, Ram Chander Chhatrapati, in 2002. In May 2024, he and four others were cleared in the killing of former sect manager Ranjit Singh, with the court citing flaws in the investigation.
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In May 2024, he and four others were cleared in the killing of former sect manager Ranjit Singh, with the court citing flaws in the investigation.
Pending cases
Ram Rahim Singh is facing another case for allegedly being involved in enforcing the castration of hundreds of his followers. He has denied the charges. In October 2018, the Panchkula CBI court granted him bail.
In October, 2024, the Supreme Court lifted an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that stayed the trial of the Dera chief in three cases from 2015 related to the alleged sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy text of the Sikhs.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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