Daijiworld Media Network - Chandigarh

Chandigarh, Mar 7: On March 7, the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted self-styled godman and Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the 2002 murder case of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati.

Rahim Singh, who is already serving a 20-year prison sentence for raping two followers and a life sentence in another case linked to Chhatrapati’s killing, was cleared of the murder charges nearly seven years after a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court convicted him and sentenced him to life imprisonment. Despite the acquittal in this case, he will remain in jail due to his conviction in the rape case.

The judgment was delivered by a Division Bench comprising chief justice Sheel Nagu and justice Vikram Aggarwal while hearing appeals against the 2019 conviction. The court, however, rejected appeals filed by two other accused persons.
The ruling came weeks after the Bench reviewed key evidence in the case, including controversy surrounding the bullets allegedly used in the crime.

In January 2019, a special CBI court in Panchkula, Haryana had convicted Rahim Singh for the killing of Chhatrapati, a journalist based in Sirsa. Three of Rahim’s close aides—Krishan Lal, Kuldeep Singh and Nirmal Singh—were also found guilty.

Chhatrapati, who published a local newspaper titled Poora Sach, was shot outside his home in Sirsa on October 24, 2002. The attackers allegedly included Kuldeep Singh and Nirmal Singh, both carpenters associated with Dera Sacha Sauda. He later succumbed to his injuries on November 21, 2002.

Initially, the case was registered at a police station in Sirsa. The state police arrested Kuldeep Singh and Nirmal Singh and recovered a walkie-talkie belonging to the Dera along with a revolver owned by Krishan Lal. A chargesheet against the three accused was filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court in Sirsa on December 5, 2002.

Later, Chhatrapati’s son approached the High Court, alleging that Rahim Singh was involved in the murder and requesting that the probe be transferred to the CBI. Acting on the court’s order dated November 10, 2003, the CBI took over the investigation.

Following its probe, the CBI named Rahim Singh along with Kuldeep Singh, Nirmal Singh and Krishan Lal in its chargesheet. In 2019, the special CBI court ruled that they had conspired to kill the journalist and sentenced them to life imprisonment.