Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Granted 40-Day Parole Again

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's Latest Parole

The leader of Dera Sacha Sauda, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, has been granted a 40-day parole, as reported by a local news outlet on Sunday.

Currently incarcerated at Sunaria jail in Rohtak, Haryana, Singh will reside at his organization's headquarters located in Sirsa during this parole period.

This marks the fourth occasion since his 2017 conviction that Singh has been permitted to leave prison. Previously, during his releases on parole or furlough, he stayed at his ashram in Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh.

Overall, this will be the 15th time Singh has been allowed to exit prison since his sentencing.

His most recent release occurred on August 5, when he was granted a 40-day parole by the Haryana government. Earlier this year, he was also released for 21 days in April and received a 30-day parole in January, just before the Delhi Assembly elections.

While furloughs can be granted without a specific reason after a prisoner has served a certain time, paroles are typically issued based on urgent needs.

Singh was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2017 for the sexual assault of two female followers at the Dera's Sirsa headquarters.

In 2021, he and four accomplices were sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a former manager of his sect. However, in May 2024, the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted him of this murder charge.

Earlier in February 2024, the High Court instructed the Haryana government that Singh could not be granted parole without its approval. This directive followed a release that occurred a month prior, which was his seventh parole in two years and ninth in four years.

In August 2024, the High Court stated that Singh's application for temporary release would be evaluated by the appropriate authorities in accordance with the 2022 Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners Temporary Release Act, ensuring no favoritism or arbitrary decisions.

The court left the final decision regarding Singh's furlough application to the Haryana Prisons Department.