A Bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan issued notice on the plea filed by the Punjab government against the stay on proceedings
The Supreme Court on Friday lifted the stay imposed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on proceedings against self-styled godman and Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in three sacrilege cases dating back to 2015.
A Bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan issued notice on the plea filed by the Punjab government against a March ruling of the Punjab & Haryana High Court that stayed proceedings against Singh in the sacrilege cases.
The top court removed the judicial block that had stalled the prosecution of the Dera Sacha Sauda chief in three sacrilege cases, involving the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib.
Earlier this year, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had stayed the proceedings against Ram Rahim in the three sacrilege cases, pausing any investigation or trial.
Notably, the sacrilege incidents had led to protests in Faridkot. In the police firing at protesters in October 2015, two persons were killed in Behbal Kalan while some people were injured at Kotkapura in Faridkot.
Ram Rahim Already Serving Sentence
Ram Rahim was serving a 20-year sentence for rape and was also convicted in a murder case. The sacrilege incidents, which took place in the Bargari area of Punjab’s Faridkot district, involved the disappearance and alleged desecration of the revered Guru Granth Sahib in 2015. The incident triggered outrage among the Sikh community.
