In a major development, the Punjab & Haryana High Court has acquitted Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the sensational murder case of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati, overturning his 2019 conviction by a CBI court. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Vikram Aggarwal delivered the verdict today on appeals filed against the trial court’s life imprisonment sentence, citing insufficient evidence to link the Dera head directly to the conspiracy.
While granting relief to Ram Rahim, the High Court upheld the convictions and life sentences imposed on the three other accused—Kuldeep Singh, Nirmal Singh, and Krishan Lal—affirming the CBI court’s findings that they were directly involved in the October 16, 2002, shooting outside Chhatrapati’s residence in Sirsa, Haryana. The journalist, known for his fearless reporting through the newspaper Poora Sach, was gunned down just days after publishing an anonymous letter exposing alleged sexual exploitation of women followers at the Dera headquarters by Ram Rahim.
The case, initially registered in 2003 under Haryana Police, was transferred to the CBI in 2006 following public outcry and demands for a thorough probe. Special CBI Judge Jagdeep Singh convicted all four accused in January 2019, holding Ram Rahim as the prime conspirator motivated by Chhatrapati’s exposĂ©s that tarnished the Dera’s image. The prosecution relied on witness testimonies, ballistic evidence, and the sequence of events linking the murder to the published letter.
This acquittal marks another legal setback reversed for Ram Rahim, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence in two separate rape cases involving his disciples, handed down by the Supreme Court in 2017. Notably, in 2024, the same High Court acquitted him in the 2002 murder of Dera manager Ranjit Singh, a case involving the killing of a former dera manager over a CD allegedly detailing the chief’s misconduct.
The verdict brings partial closure to a high-profile probe that highlighted issues of press freedom and cult influence, but raises questions on the chain of command in such organizations. Legal experts suggest the CBI may appeal the acquittal to the Supreme Court, while victim advocacy groups decry it as a blow to justice for whistleblowers.
Lawcutor 