On Tuesday, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the leader of Dera Sacha Sauda and a convicted rapist, was granted 21-day parole and released from Sunaria Jail in Rohtak, Haryana. His release took place at 6:30 AM, with two vehicles from the ashram arriving to pick him up. During his parole, Ram Rahim will stay at Dera Sacha Saudas Baghpat ashram.This development follows the Punjab and Haryana High Courts decision on August 9, which dismissed the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committees (SGPC) petition challenging Ram Rahims temporary release. The court ruled that requests for temporary release should be evaluated by the appropriate authority without bias or favoritism.The SGPC, the leading body for Sikh gurdwaras, had argued that Ram Rahims release could undermine national sovereignty and public order, given his convictions for serious crimes including murder and rape.Legal proceedingsEarlier this year, in June, Ram Rahim had petitioned the high court for a 21-day furlough. The court had previously instructed the Haryana government on February 29 not to grant further parole without its approval. Ram Rahim is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for raping two disciples and was granted a 50-day parole on January 19.The courts recent order dismissed the SGPCs claim that the Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Act of 1988 should have been applied instead of the 2022 Act. The court affirmed that the 2022 Act governs conditional temporary releases based on good conduct.Judicial observationsThe court noted that the divisional commissioner of police is responsible for overseeing the parole process. It emphasized that any future applications for temporary release by Ram Rahim must be handled in strict accordance with the 2022 Act, ensuring fairness and transparency.Previous legal decisionsIn May, the high court had acquitted Ram Rahim and four others in the 2002 murder case of Ranjit Singh, citing insufficient and flawed investigations. The case had previously resulted in life imprisonment sentences for the five accused, with Ram Rahim found guilty of conspiring in the murder.
