Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh appears virtually before court in sacrilege cases

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, May 4

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on Wednesday appeared before the court of the Faridkot chief judicial magistrate (CJM) through video-conferencing in connection with sacrilege cases. He furnished his bail bonds in the cases.

The court adjourned the proceedings to May 16 as the Punjab Police special investigation team (SIT) failed to supply the copies of challan to the accused.

Last month, the Faridkot court had directed the Superintendent of the Central Jail, Sunaria (Rohtak), to ensure the presence of the Ram Rahim through video-conferencing on May 4 in two sacrilege cases. The court said the presence of the accused was required in the two criminal cases registered at the Bajakhana police station in 2015.

The dera chief was lodged in the Sunaria jail after his conviction in two criminal cases. On the basis of a supplementary challan given by the police on February 27, the dera chief was named as an accused. The cases relate to alleged pasting of derogatory posters near a gurdwara in Bargari and scattering torn pages of ‘bir’ of Guru Granth Sahib at Bargari in September and October 2015.

On the last date of hearing, the court had directed the SIT to supply the copies of the challan to the accused as per the model rules on video-conferencing framed by Punjab and Haryana High Court for further proceedings with the trial. But as the police failed in supplying all documents relating to challan to the accused, the court adjourned the case for May 16.

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