'The court decides’: Haryana CM Khattar responds on parole granted to convicted Ram Rahim

 

Ram Rahim was convicted by a special CBI court in 2017 for rape. In 2021, he and his aides were found guilty of murdering former Dera manager Ranjit Singh in 2002.

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday clarified his position on the parole granted to convicted Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and said that he had “no role” in his parole. Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is serving a 20-year jail term after being convicted of rape and murder cases and is currently out on a 40-day parole.

"I have no role in this as it is the job of the court to give bail or parole to any person. The court decides whom to give parole. I do not want to say anything more on this matter," Haryana CM said while addressing a press conference.

On Sunday, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Harjinder Singh Dhami termed Ram Rahim as “anti-social” and objected to his announcement of opening a ‘dera’ in Punjab. "The announcement by this controversial person to open a Dera in Punjab has hurt the Sikh sentiments and this may spoil the peaceful atmosphere of Punjab, SGPC president Dhami said adding that the Punjab government should play its role responsibly in this "very serious" matter and resolve that no branch of Dera Sirsa is established in Punjab."

Ram Rahim's parole order has charged the political atmosphere ahead of crucial by-polls in the state. Trinamool MP Mahua Moitra also attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party after Karnal mayor Renu Bala Gupta and several BJP politicians attended the rape convict's virtual ‘satsang’. Ram Rahim was convicted by a special CBI court in Panchkula in 2017 for rape. In 2021, he and his aides were found guilty of murdering former Dera manager Ranjit Singh in 2002.