Ram Rahim withdraws sentence suspension plea

Nearly two years after Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim moved an application before the Punjab and Haryana High Court for suspension of sentence in the 2017 rape case, he has withdrawn the plea.

“This is an application for suspension of sentence awarded to the applicant-appellant during the pendency of the appeal. At the very outset, R Basant, senior counsel for the applicant-appellant, on instructions, prays for and is permitted to withdraw this application with liberty to revisit the court,” the Bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Vikram Aggarwal asserted.

Ram Rahim was convicted by Panchkula CBI Special Court in 2017 and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 20 years.

The Bench on the previous date of hearing had observed that the application for suspension of sentence was pending for nearly two years. As such, the matter required immediate attention for disposal. The senior counsel for the applicant-appellant, on the other hand, submitted that another criminal appeal filed by the same appellant regarding a different offence was listed for final hearing on July 21. As such, a request was made to adjourn this matter for the same date.

“With great reluctance, this court adjourns this application for suspension of sentence to July 21, with understanding that whether the application is argued or not, same shall be disposed of on the date fixed,” the Bench had asserted.