After nearly half an hour of closing arguments which even saw his council take the “social worker” angle the god man Ram Rahim pleading for mercy with folded hands, the court finally condemned him to 10 years in jail.The self-styled guru, dressed in white, was quiet throughout the court proceedings but reportedly broke down while the quantum of punishment was being read out.
The 50-year-old godman has been convicted under IPC section 376 (rape), Section 506 (criminal intimidation) and Section 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman). This is with accordance to the Indian Penal Code where the minimum sentence for rape, under is seven years and the maximum is life imprisonment.
Ahead of the sentencing of Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh today, the District Jail premises in Sunaria has been cordoned off and the Army has been kept on standby. Haryana Director General of Police (DGP) B S Sandhu said “we are fully prepared for any situation”. Security forces in Haryana and Punjab are on high alert. The army today is conducted flag march in Panchkula ahead of Dera chief’s sentencing. A multi-layered arrangement has been put in place in and around Haryana. 1500 police personnel from Rohtak district police, around 500 from the adjoining districts and 23 paramilitary companies provided by the central government have been deployed ahead of the verdict.
Fearing violence after Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s sentencing in a rape case today, a village close to the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters readied itself to face angry followers with a stockpile of stones, sticks, bricks and iron rods.
Villagers in Shahpur Beghu, 500 metres from the sprawling headquarters of the Dera, said they were “fully prepared” to face violent followers of the self-styled godman who was convicted of rape on August 25. A large number of Dera followers are leaving the sect headquarters. The Haryana Roadways is providing bus facility to those supporters willing to leave the area.
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