SC lifts stay on proceedings against Ram Rahim in 2015 sacrilege case

Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is currently serving a 20-year jail sentence for his conviction in a rape case and has also been found guilty of murder

The Supreme Court on Friday lifted the stay imposed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, allowing legal proceedings to continue against Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the head of Dera Sacha Sauda, in connection with three 2015 sacrilege cases. These cases involve the desecration of the Sikh holy scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, in Faridkot district, Punjab.

Key points:

• The Supreme Court lifted the stay on proceedings against Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the 2015 sacrilege case.
• The case involves the desecration of the Sikh holy scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, in Punjab's Faridkot district.
• The High Court stay order from March 2023 has been overturned, allowing the trial to proceed.
• Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for rape and murder convictions.
   

What is the 2015 sacrilege case?

In 2015, a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib, known as a 'bir', was reported stolen. This incident was followed by handwritten sacrilegious posters and torn pages of the scripture found scattered in the village of Bargari, Faridkot. The desecration led to widespread protests and outrage across the region. In October 2015, the situation escalated when police fired on demonstrators, killing two people in Behbal Kalan and injuring several others at Kotkapura.

Following these events, multiple first information reports (FIRs) were lodged, and investigations began to identify the perpetrators. Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, a self-styled godman and leader of Dera Sacha Sauda, became a suspect during these investigations. Although no direct evidence has conclusively linked Ram Rahim to the sacrilege, accusations from Sikh groups and the arrest of individuals connected to his sect intensified suspicions of his involvement.

Stay order against the sacrilege case

In March 2023, the Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed the proceedings against Ram Rahim in the sacrilege cases following a petition he had filed. This legal move came after Ram Rahim had earlier requested a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into the three FIRs related to the 2015 incidents. However, with the Supreme Court’s recent decision, the trial is set to resume.

A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan issued the ruling and also served notice to Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh following an appeal by the Punjab government challenging the High Court's earlier stay on the trial.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted in a rape case and has also been found guilty of murder. His alleged involvement in the sacrilege cases remains a politically charged issue in Punjab, with political parties accusing each other of protecting the Dera or failing to conduct a proper investigation. The issue of sacrilege and the fatal police firings continue to be significant in Punjab's political landscape, especially during elections.

(With agency inputs)