Ram Rahim Sentencing: Widespread violence was witnessed after Dera chief's rape conviction.
The sentence against rape convict
Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was declared by a special CBI court today. He has been sentenced to 20 years in prison as he was announced
guilty of raping two women in a 2002 case. Followers of Dera Sacha Sauda in Punjab, Haryana and other cities, burned down gas stations and train stations and torched vehicles after Dera chief Ram Rahim was announced guilty of rape by the special CBI court in Panchkula on Friday. At least 38 people were killed and more than 200 injured in the violence in Haryana, officials said, drawing sharp criticism for the state government. The Haryana police said they have made sufficient security arrangements to ensure peace and harmony. The 50-year-old "
Guru of Bling" has been lodged in Rohtak's Sunaria jail. Rohtak has been placed under multi-layered security; 28 companies of paramilitary troops have been stationed in the town and Dera followers are not being allowed to enter the district.
Here are live updates from Gurmeet Ram Rahim's Rape case sentencing in Rohtak:
Delhi will continue to remain on high alert: Delhi Police
- The city had an elaborate arrangement. This programme was arranged based on the verdict.
- No incident has been reported so far in Delhi.This arrangement will continue tonight and in all probability tomorrow as well.
- Delhi police had not issued any advisory saying that all educational organisations would be shut.
BREAKING NEWS: Gurmeet Ram Rahim to serve 20 years in jail, 10 years for each rape case, says CBI spokesperson
We Will read out judgement in detail: Ram Rahim's lawyer
Will read out the judgement in detail and will definitely appeal in higher courts, said Ram Rahim's lawyer. He also said that the judge announced 10 years imprisonment, Rs 15 lakh fine each in two cases and Rs 14 lakh each to be paid to both women.
'Protector Became Beast': CBI Asks For Life Sentence For Ram Rahim
CBI sources said while asking the court to reconsider Ram Rahim's sentence, they have quoted a Supreme Court verdict in the case of a woman who was raped by the head of a cult in Chennai. The top court said the crime was especially heinous because "the protector became the beast", a comment the premier investigating agency is using in Ram Rahim's case.
Curfew to be imposed in Punjab's Barnala from 9 pm today till 9 am tomorrow: Harjeet Singh, SSP Barnala
"Chief Minister ML Khattar may not be the most experienced political leader in the country - in fact, he has not held an administrative position earlier; but in India, the system is run collectively by politicians, bureaucrats and the police, and they are well-trained to handle such crises. In fact because he comes without baggage, ML Khattar is still regarded as honest and sincere, incapable of petty intrigue. He was nowhere in the reckoning to become Haryana Chief Minister as even his party was not expected to win the polls. So to suggest that he was beholden to the Dera for the office he holds is a preposterous piece of journalistic fiction," Journalist Chandan Mitra writes for NDTV on why
BJP is right to back Khattar despite Haryana riots.
Focus was to contain the violence: AS Dhillon, Inspector general, Sirsa
- There were six deaths, we are sorry for those but I can assure they were the last resort
.
-There are still thousands of people (inside Dera campus) but it come down drastically
.
-Would not like to share a figure.
Ram Rahim Sentenced: Here Is What Happened In Court
- Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh broke down in court
- Entered court for sentence with folded hands
- As jail term was announced, fell to the ground and cried
- "I am innocent," Ram Rahim wept
- Begged for leniency saying: "Please forgive me"
- Refused to leave court, was led out by commandos
Earlier today, a car was set on fire by unknown persons near Sirsa after Ram Rahim was sentenced to 10 years in a rape case.
"We are probing the matter. The statement of the village sarpanch is being recorded. Prima facie it appears to be an act of arson by Dera followers, who are irked over the court
judgement," a police official said.
Who Will Lead Dera Sect After Ram Rahim: Tale Of Two WomenVipassana Insan, the chairperson of the Dera Sacha Sauda, is widely seen as one of the candidates to succeed Ram Rahim as the leader of the Dera sect, along with his adopted daughter Honeypreet.
(Honeypreet Insan: adopted daughter of Ram Rahim Insan) Anshul Chhatrapati, son of the journalist killed for exposing Dera chief, breathed a sigh of relief. "Satisfactory, been saying since long Ram Rahim is enemy of our society," Mr Chhatrapati said.
Ram Chander Chhatrapati ran a local daily Poora Sacch. He was shot dead a few months after he published an anonymous letter narrating how women were being sexually harassed by Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim at the Dera headquarters in Sirsa.
"Our father can never do any sin," devotee Trilok Insaan said ahead of the sentence at a shop in Sirsa
Followers of the flamboyant Ram Rahim, who is known as the "guru in bling" because of his penchant for bejeweled costumes and customised superbikes, continued to insist upon his innocence.
Decision of the court is correct, BJP Haryana in-charge Anil Jain tells NDTV
- In this case, those accused of violence will not be spared
- 574 people have been arrested till now
- Haryana government will sternly implement the High Court order
Army is flag marching in Sirsa in Haryana after Ram Rahim was sentenced in a 15-year-old rape case by court.
Mujhe Maaf Kardo...
The Dera chief pleaded for lesser sentence saying "mujhe maaf kardo" (please forgive me).
Congress reacts to Ram Rahim sentencing, expresses support:
Senior members of Ram Rahim's Dera Sacha Sauda sect were placed under detention as a precautionary measure.
Ram Rahim, weeping, refused to leave the courtroom after the 10-year sentence was announced. He was taken out forcefully.
Sources confirmed that Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was in tears after he was sentenced to ten years in prison.
Gurmeet Ram Rahim's medical examination is underway; he will be given a jail uniform and will be allotted a cell immediately after, reports news agency ANI.
CBI sources say they will push for greater sentence and have already moved application, in this regard.
BREAKING NEWS: Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh sentenced to 10 years in prison for raping two women in 2002.
Copy of judgement has been brought out.
Arguments end in court; CBI seeks 10-year jail term for rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Defence seeks reduced term for him on health grounds.
Special CBI judge Jagdeep Singh reaches Rohtak's Sonaria jail to announce the quantum of sentence for rape convict Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
The chopper has taken off for Rohtak and it should take about 30 minutes to reach Rohtak.
Barbed-wire barriers have been erected and residents warned to stay indoors in Rohtak. Senior members of Gurmeet Ram Rahim's sect were placed under detention as a precautionary measure.
To sentence Ram Rahim, Judge to land in chopper shortly:
10 factsThe Border Security Force (BSF) has set up bunkers right outside the prison. Twenty-eight paramilitary companies, with about 2,400 personnel, have been deployed and 18 columns or about 1,800 soldiers of the Army are on standby.
Ram Rahim's main base in Sirsa, a sprawling 1,000-acre campus is
likely to be searched by the police after the sentence. In searches at various Dera congregation centres, the police have found a large number of weapons, cars, bikes and "other objectionable items," says Haryana police chief BS Sandhu.
After landing at a helipad near the prison where the "Guru of Bling" was incarcerated late on Friday night,
Justice Jagdeep Singh will be escorted with thick security cover to a makeshift prison created within the jail located on the outskirts of Rohtak.
On Friday, as soon as the judge held Ram Rahim guilty of rape, tens of thousands of his supporters burnt cars and buses, vandalized property and targeted the media and others. Thirty-eight people have died in the clashes and property worth crores was destroyed in Panchkula, where the verdict was announced.
"We will not allow anyone to create any sort of trouble in Rohtak. Anyone breaking law or indulging in acts of violence or arson will himself be responsible for his fate. Anyone creating trouble will be given a warning first and if he still pays no heed, then he will have to face the bullet,"
Rohtak's deputy commissioner, Atul Kumar, said.
Locals in Rohtak have been asked to stay indoors as a preventive measure ahead of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's sentencing.