Verdict on Dera chief: Punjab, Haryana tell MHA steps taken

New Delhi, August 16

The Punjab and Haryana governments on Wednesday apprised the Centre the steps taken by them to maintain law and order ahead of a special court's verdict in a case of an alleged rape involving Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, a Home Ministry official said.

The top civil and police officers of the two states met Union home secretary-designate Rajiv Gauba and other senior officials of the home ministry and briefed them about the security arrangement being put in place in Punjab and Haryana, the official said.

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The home ministry officials advised the officials of Punjab and Haryana to ensure that the police remain on alert to ensure peace when the court in Panchkula delivers its verdict, the official said.

The court has been hearing the case against Singh for the last few years and is expected to deliver its verdict soon.

The sect chief was accused by a former female follower of raping her inside the Dera campus on the outskirts of Sirsa town in Haryana. While the alleged incident occurred in 1999, the FIR was lodged in 2002.

The CBI investigated the matter against the sect head.

The sect management has been refuting all charges against Singh.

He has large followers in Haryana and Punjab. — PTI