Dera chief Ram Rahim moves high court, challenges CBI court verdict in rape case

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on Monday moved Punjab and Haryana high court challenging his conviction in the rape case by the CBI special court.

The petition was filed by counsels of the disgraced self-styled godman here.

The matter is not yet listed by the court for hearing.

“We have filed an appeal challenging the conviction in the high court,” said SK Narwana, dear chief counsel.

A CBI court had in August sentenced self-styled leader Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to 20 years in jail and fined him Rs 30 lakh for raping two women 15 years ago.

“There are number of material issues on which the appeal has been filed. One of them is that medical of the girls was never conducted and also there was no FIR lodged by them,” said advocate Narwana, while talking about the grounds on which the conviction had been challenged.

He added, “The victim after more than six years had got their statements recorded before the CBI, which was never placed on record.”

The appeal will be soon taken up by the Punjab and Haryana high court, he said.

In a separate development, the CBI court in Panchkula on Monday rejected a plea by Khatta Singh, a former driver of the sect chief, who wanted to record a fresh statement in the murder cases against the sect chief.

(With agency inputs)