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Bir theft case: SIT preparing questionnaire to grill dera chief in Sunaria jail
SIT head inspector general of police Surinder Pal Singh Parmar said the probe team is waiting for the confirmation of date from the Sunaria jail authorities to question Ram Rahim
Ahead of its visit to Sunaria jail in Rohtak to grill Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the special investigation team (SIT) probing the 2105 sacrilege cases is preparing a questionnaire on the basis of evidence on record.
Last week, a Faridkot court issued production warrants against Ram Rahim in a case of sacrilege wherein a “bir” (copy) of Guru Granth Sahib was stolen from a gurdwara in Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village of Faridkot district on June 1, 2015. But Punjab and Haryana high court directed Punjab Police to grill Ram Rahim in Rohtak jail itself, if it so desired, and directed the jail authorities to make arrangements for the SIT to question the dera head.
SIT head inspector general of police Surinder Pal Singh Parmar said the probe team is waiting for the confirmation of date from the Sunaria jail authorities to question Ram Rahim. “We will grill him immediately after getting the confirmation,” he added.
An official privy with the development said that: “The SIT is preparing a detailed questionnaire on the basis of evidence collected against the dera head over his role in the 2015 sacrilege cases. The probe team wants to question Ram Rahim before the hearing in the high court on November 12, so it can submit a complete report on the conduct of the dera chief during interrogation. The SIT will seek further instructions from the court if dera head does not cooperate during the interrogation,” the official added.
In July 2020, after the arrest of seven dera followers, the SIT led by former inspector general of police Ranbir Singh Khatra had named Ram Rahim and dera’s three national committee members—Sandeep Bareta, Pardeep Kler and Harsh Dhuri— as accused in the case.
The “bir” was stolen from Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village gurdwara on June 1, 2015. On October 12, 2015, torn pages of that “bir” were found scattered in front of a gurdwara in the adjoining Bargari village, leading to statewide protests and death of two Sikh protesters in police firing.
In its chargesheet, the SIT claimed that it was Ram Rahim who ordered to carry out sacrilege to avenge insult of sect followers by a Sikh preacher.
The dera head is lodged in Sunaria jail of Rohtak since August 25, 2017. In 2017, he was awarded 20-year jail term for the rape of two disciples. Subsequently, he has been convicted in murder cases of a journalist, Ram Chander Chhatrapati, and Ranjit Singh, a former dera manager, in which life sentence has been awarded.
