The Punjab and Haryana High Court has resumed hearing in the Ram Chander Chhatrapati murder case, citing the "emergence of new facts". This development comes more than four months after the court had reserved its verdict in the case.
Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the chief of Dera Sacha Sauda, is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati, in addition to a 20-year sentence for raping two of his disciples. He is lodged in Sunaria Jail, Haryana.
Chhatrapati, a journalist, was murdered in 2002. The case was initially handled by local authorities before being transferred to the CBI in November 2023. A special CBI court in Panchkula convicted Ram Rahim and his associates in October 2021, sentencing them to life imprisonment. However, the High Court overturned this decision, prompting the CBI to appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the CBI's plea challenging the acquittal of Gurmeet Ram Rahim and four others in the 2002 murder of Ranjit Singh.
In related legal proceedings, the Punjab & Haryana High Court has addressed Ram Rahim's petitions concerning other cases. These include a plea seeking the transfer of a probe to the CBI in 2015 sacrilege cases, which was referred to a larger bench. Furthermore, the High Court directed a CBI court to re-evaluate the relevance of documents sought by Ram Rahim in a follower's castration case. Ram Rahim had also withdrawn a plea from the Punjab & Haryana High Court for suspension of his sentence in a rape case.
Ram Rahim's frequent paroles have drawn significant public attention and raised questions about the justice system. Recently, he was granted a 40-day parole, marking the 15th time he has been released since his conviction in 2017. His lawyer defends these releases, asserting that parole is a statutory right available to every convict and follows due legal process. However, the timing of his paroles, often coinciding with major religious gatherings, has sparked controversy and scrutiny. For instance, his recent parole coincided with preparations for the birth anniversary of Shah Satnam Maharaj, the sect's second successor, an event marked by month-long religious programs at the Sirsa campus. The Punjab & Haryana High Court has stated that any plea by Ram Rahim seeking temporary release must be decided without favoritism or arbitrariness.