In a major development, the Supreme Court on Friday decided to hear the CBI’s appeal challenging the acquittal of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and four others in the 2002 murder of Ranjit Singh, a former sect manager.
On May 28, 2024, the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and others in the case, citing the investigation as “tainted and sketchy.”
The High Court further emphasized that media trials should not influence objective evaluations of the evidence on record.
Singh, who hails from Sirsa and is serving a 20-year sentence for the alleged rape of two disciples, is currently incarcerated at Sunaria Jail in Rohtak, Haryana. He was also sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati, with his sentence set to begin once his current term ends.
Singh has previously made headlines for being granted parole multiple times. On Friday, a bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar issued notices to Singh and the four others acquitted in the case.
The bench acknowledged the submissions of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, who informed that a bench led by Justice Bela M. Trivedi had already issued notices to the acquitted individuals in response to a separate petition filed by the deceased’s father challenging the high court’s verdict.
“Our attention has been drawn to the office report dated September 9, 2024 regarding the order passed by the bench of Justice Bela Trivedi. Issue notice… matter is to be listed before the bench presided over by Justice Bela Trivedi,” said the top court.
Ranjit Singh was tragically shot and killed by four unidentified assailants in Khanpur Kolian Village, located in Haryana’s Kurukshetra, on July 10, 2002.
The murder was reportedly masterminded by Singh, who believed that Ranjit Singh was responsible for circulating an anonymous letter that accused him of sexually exploiting his female followers.
The CBI, which took over the investigation in November 2023, asserted that there was a clear motive behind the crime. However, a division bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Singh, noting that the prosecution failed to definitively establish the motive and describing the case as “shrouded in doubts.”
