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Police reveal dera human bombs threat
WSN Network
Chandigarh: The Punjab police revealed
that the Sirsa dera had plans of targeting senior Punjab leaders
with human bombs but later said the intelligence department had
identified some potential self-immolators belonging to the Dera
Sacha Sauda, who were portrayed as human bombs.
The Bathinda police were rapped by the government for releasing the
pictures of five such dera follower women and hanging them on walls
across police stations in the state.
Dera chief spokesperson Aditya Insaan alleged that the Punjab police
were hell bent on defaming the dera by levelling one charge after
the other. He said like the human-bomb theory, self-immolation was
another ploy to paint the dera in bad light. He, however, failed to
explain that if that was the case why the dera followers were
continuing to immolate themselves and if that was a pressure tactic
to prevent action against the dera sadh.
Senior officers said the intelligence report was prepared
apprehending a volatile situation that could be triggered following
suicides by the dera premis. They said the atmosphere was already
tense as the hearing on the sect head, Gurmeet Ram Rahim, in the
Ambala court approached nearer. The officials informed that
preventive arrests had been made after getting information from the
intelligence department that a number of Dera followers had planned
to immolate themselves on August 15 to register their protest.
CBI files reply in Gurmeet Ram's bail pleas case
Chandigarh: Various witnesses of the case pertaining to rape
allegations against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim have
expressed apprehension and threat to their lives in case they
deposed against the rapist sadh. The CBI stated this in its response
filed through the standing counsel Rajan Gupta about the
anticipatory bail plea of the accused. The same is due to come up
for further consideration before Justice LN Mittal of the Punjab and
Haryana High Court on Tuesday.
The grant of bail to the accused at this stage will seriously
prejudice the trial as the petitioner is an influential person and
is in a position to threaten and intimidate the witnesses, it added.
It has also pointed out that the CBI was able to complete the
arduous task of investigation of the case despite the fact that the
witnesses were terrorised and pressurised to resile from their
statements, the CBI has submitted to say that police protection had
to be provided to the witnesses.
The CBI dwelt at length how it initiated the investigation after the
case was assigned by the HC after receiving an anonymous letter
allegedly from a female inmate who said the sadh had raped her
repeatedly. At least two sadhvis confirmed being raped by the
petitioner to the CBI during investigation and their statements were
recorded under Section 164 CrPC. One of them made her statement
before the chief judicial magistrate, Chandigarh on March 19,2007 .
The CBI disclosed that the ‘gufa’ where the sadh raped female
inmates, was guarded at night by sadhvis. The ‘gufa’ had three doors
and one them opened in front of the female inmates’ hostel. It
referred to the rape of Sarjeewan, sister of the deceased Ranjit
Singh, who used to serve as a teacher in a school run by the dera.
Her husband Paramjit Singh confirmed this to the CBI. Similar
confirmation came from Khatta Singh, former driver of the Sirsa sadh,
it was further submitted.
29 August, 2007
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