High Court allows Haryana police to raid Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters

Source – timesnownews.com

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday allowed the Haryana police and the district administration to search the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters in Sirsa.

The searches will be conducted under the supervision of a judicial officer, the high court said.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had on Monday stated and the administration will enter the sect’s headquarters at Sirsa only after the Punjab and Haryana High Court appoints a judicial magistrate for the purpose.

The high court order comes a day after Dera supporters surrendered around 33 high-powered guns to the police that was present at the gates of the Dera headquarters.

The police will now conduct extensive searches of the sprawling campus of the Dera Sacha Sauda at Sirsa, spread over 800 acres.

The High Court had earlier taken up a PIL filed by Ravinder Dhull, a Panchkula resident, who had raised concerns over the law and order situation and stated that over 1.5 lakh people had reportedly entered the district earlier despite prohibitory orders.

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Violence broke out there after Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s conviction in rape cases, leaving at least 35 people dead. Six others died in incidents of violence in Sirsa.

Ram Rahim was later sentenced to 20 years in prison. The Haryana government had come under attack for allowing a huge build up of Dera Sacha Sauda followers in Panchkula. Earlier, Khattar had said the violence could have turned much worse had the government not been alert.

He said the state government had taken steps after due consideration in compliance with the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

“Had the government had not been alert, the situation could have been much worse,” he said, adding, “Our priority was to produce Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the court to avoid a situation like the one during the arrest of Rampal in Barwala (in 2014).”

On August 30, Khattar had ruled out his resignation after meeting BJP chief Amit Shah in Delhi, saying his government had acted with “restraint” in handling the situation.