Gurmeet Ram Rahim seeks 20-day parole again ahead of Haryana elections; poll panel questions reasoning
PTC News Desk: Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is serving a 20-year jail term for sexually assaulting two of his disciples, has again sought a temporary release on a 20-day parole. This comes only days before the Haryana assembly elections.
Singh, who returned to Rohtak's Sunaria jail on September 2 after being released on a 21-day furlough on August 13, has frequently been accused of trying to influence his followers, who are primarily centred in Haryana, to vote in a specific way in the elections.
Since his 20-year sentence in 2017, the Dera chief has been released on parole or furlough ten times, totalling 255 days, or more than eight months, outside of jail. Several of his paroles and furloughs coincided with elections in Haryana and neighbouring states.
According to officials familiar with the situation, Singh's application for a 20-day release has been sent to the election department, which has requested the jails department to explain the "compelling emergent reasons" behind the request, as required by Election Commission norms.
Elections to the 90-member Haryana assembly will take place on October 5.
- PTC NEWS
