A special CBI court in Panchkula on Monday held a hearing in the murder case of former Dera Sacha Sauda manager Ranjit Singh which allegedly involved jailed sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
The dera chief, who is lodged in Rohtak’s Sunaria jail after being held guilty of rape, appeared via video-conferencing in the court of special CBI court judge Jagdeep Singh.
The special court is hearing the final arguments in former Dera manager’s murder case on a day-to-day basis.
The prosecution read out statements of several witnesses in the case. The hearing will be held again on Tuesday.
Former Dera manager Ranjit Singh was allegedly shot dead in 2002. He was murdered for his suspected role in the circulation of an anonymous letter, which narrated how women were being sexually exploited by the sect head at the Dera headquarters.
Ram Rahim Singh has been named as the main conspirator in the Ranjit Singh murder case. Other five accused Krishan lal, Jasbir Singh, Sabdil Singh, Indersen and Avtar Singh were also present in the court. The CBI court is also hearing the case related to the killing of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati who was shot at in October 2002 after a newspaper owned by him, published an anonymous letter narrating how women were being sexually exploited by the sect head.
The court will hear Chhatrapati’s case on September 22. Ram Rahim is an accused in this case as well.