Punjab and Haryana High Court acquits Gurmeet Ram Rahim in journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati murder case

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday acquitted Gurmeet Ram Rahim in the 2002 murder case of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati. The ruling came nearly two decades after the killing and six years after a trial court convicted the controversial religious leader.

A division bench led by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Vikram Aggarwal delivered the decision in open court on Saturday morning. The bench set aside the earlier conviction of Ram Rahim. However, the court upheld the guilty verdict against at least two other accused in the case.

Earlier, a special CBI court in Panchkula had convicted Ram Rahim and three others in January 2019. The trial court had sentenced them to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹50,000. After the verdict, the accused challenged the decision in the High Court and argued that investigators had wrongly implicated them in the crime.

Now, the High Court has reversed the conviction of the dera chief. The judges announced the verdict in court and indicated that they will release a detailed written judgment later in the day. That document will explain the legal reasoning behind the acquittal.

The case traces back to October 2002. Unknown attackers shot journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati at close range outside his residence in Sirsa. Doctors treated him for several days, but he later died from his injuries.

The murder created a major controversy at the time. Chhatrapati had published reports about alleged sexual abuse inside the Dera Sacha Sauda. His newspaper carried an anonymous letter that described serious allegations against the dera leadership. The letter claimed that women followers, known as sadhvis, faced sexual exploitation inside the organization.

Investigators later linked the murder to the publication of that letter. As a result, the Central Bureau of Investigation launched a probe and filed charges against Ram Rahim and several others. The case moved through the courts for years before the trial court delivered its conviction in 2019.

Meanwhile, Ram Rahim continues to serve a prison sentence in another case. In 2017, a special CBI court convicted him in two rape cases involving former women followers. The court awarded him a 20-year sentence. Authorities currently hold him in Sunaria jail in Rohtak, Haryana.

That 2017 conviction triggered large-scale violence across parts of Haryana and neighbouring states. Supporters of the dera chief clashed with security forces in Panchkula and other towns. The clashes left more than 40 people dead and injured dozens.

Legal developments in other cases have also continued. In May 2024, the High Court acquitted Ram Rahim in the murder case of former dera manager Ranjit Singh. Investigators had earlier accused him of orchestrating that killing as well.

At the same time, authorities continue to investigate other allegations linked to the dera leadership. Police in Punjab have registered several FIRs related to the 2015 sacrilege incidents. Those investigations remain ongoing.

In addition, Ram Rahim has received temporary parole on several occasions during his imprisonment. Authorities granted him a 40-day parole in January this year. Each such release has triggered political criticism and raised security concerns in parts of northern India.

The latest High Court verdict marks another major legal turn in the long-running cases involving the dera chief. However, the full impact of the ruling will become clearer after the court releases its detailed judgment.