Money offered to change evidence, alleges sadhu

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 15

More trouble is brewing for jailed Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Hans Raj Chauhan, who initiated the case of castration of sadhus against him, has now alleged in a complaint to the police that he was pressured at Ram Rahim’s behest to change his statement.

In a first information report (FIR) lodged at Tohana City Police Station of Fatehabad on Friday, Chauhan alleged that Raj Kumar, aka Raju, another castrated sadhu from Kalyan Nagar colony of the dera, offered him money on Ram Rahim’s behalf and pressured him to change his ongoing evidence in the case.

“I had filed a writ petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court demanding a probe into the castration of nearly 400 sadhus, including me, on the direction of Ram Rahim. On the orders of the High Court, the case against Ram Rahim and some others is being heard in the CBI Court at Panchkula. My evidence in the case is in progress and the next date of hearing has been fixed for September 19,” said Chauhan in his complaint to the police at his hometown Tohana.

He alleged that ever since he had filed the case, efforts were made from time to time to pressure him. He had complained to the police in this regard.

“On August 29, at 7 pm, Raj Kumar, whose name also appears in the list of castrated sadhus that I had submitted in the High Court, along with his mother came to my residence at Bajgar Mohalla in Tohana and offered to pay me money if I don’t depose against Ram Rahim. He told me that they have come on Ram Rahim’s instructions and they could give me as much money as I demand for backing out from being a witness against the dera head,” Chauhan alleged. He said that later the duo left in their car.

The police said that a case under Sections 195-A (threatening any person to give false evidence), 214 (offering gift or restoration of property in consideration of screening offenders) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC had been registered and investigation started.