In a significant legal development, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has acquitted Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the chief of Dera Sacha Sauda, in the Ranjit Singh murder case. This decision overturns the 2021 verdict by a CBI court in Haryana’s Panchkula, which had sentenced Singh and four others to life imprisonment for their roles in the conspiracy to murder Ranjit Singh, a former Dera manager, in 2002.

The acquittal was pronounced by a division bench comprising Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Lalit Batra, who allowed Singh’s appeal against his conviction under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

According to the CBI chargesheet, Ranjit Singh was shot dead on July 10, 2002. It was alleged that Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh suspected Ranjit Singh of circulating an anonymous letter that exposed cases of sexual exploitation of female followers within the Dera. The CBI court had found it proved beyond reasonable doubt that Singh, aggrieved by the circulation of the letter, conspired with others to murder Ranjit Singh.

Despite this acquittal, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh remains incarcerated. He is currently serving a 20-year jail term for the rape of two female disciples, a conviction dating back to 2017. Additionally, Singh has been convicted of murdering journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati, for which he received a life sentence that will commence after completing his current term.

In recent legal proceedings, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to surrender, ordering the Haryana Government not to grant him further parole without the court’s permission. An application seeking to vacate the said order is pending consideration before the High Court.