Frequent parole to Gurmeet Singh is ‘very disappointing’, says son of slain journalist; seeks court intervention

Drawing parallels between the Supreme Court staying suspension of life sentence to former BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar in a rape case, and the frequent release on parole of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist and murderer, the son of slain journalist Ramchander Chhatrapati has voiced out that the top court should take suo motu cognisance of the matter.

Gurmeet Singh was convicted in the murder case of Ramchander Chhatrapati in 2019.

In a video following the release of the Dera chief on 40-day parole a day ago, the journalist’s son Anshul Chhatrapati described the frequent grant of parole and furlough to Gurmeet Singh as “very disappointing”.

‘Bigger criminal than Sengar’

Calling the Dera chief a “bigger criminal” than Sengar, Mr. Anshul said the manner in which the Supreme Court stayed the High Court order suspending life sentence in his case, the top court should take cognisance of the frequent release of Singh as well.

Besides the rape victims and the families of the murder victims, his frequent release posed danger to the witnesses in the cases under trial, said Mr. Anshul, adding how a witness in a case pertaining to forced castration of Dera chief’s male followers had demanded that he be allowed to depose through video conferencing fearing a threat to his life.

Gurmeet Singh, serving a 20-year jail term for raping two of his disciples, had walked out of Sunaria jail in Rohtak on Monday after he was granted a 40-day parole — the 15^th time since his conviction in 2017.

He has been temporarily released for around 400 days over the past eight years, including half-a-dozen times coinciding with different elections, including Haryana, Punjab and Delhi Assembly polls.

Mr. Anshul said the parole, granting of which was a prerogative of the government, was not the “right” of the convict. Gurmeet Singh was granted frequent parole citing his good conduct inside the jail, but for someone convicted in a rape and murder case, their conduct outside the jail held more significance, he argued.

“On the one hand, the police security provided to my family and the family of the rape victim and the witnesses in 2007, after the filing of the chargesheet, was gradually reduced and finally withdrawn a couple of months ago, Gurmeet Singh is being allowed to come out of the jail freely,” said Mr. Anshul.

He said that he suspected the political and financial considerations behind the frequent release of the Dera chief. “It is not just the vote bank, but there also seems to be note bank behind the frequent grant of parole,” Mr. Anshul pointed out.

Dera Sacha Sauda spokesperson and advocate Jitender Khurana said Gurmeet Singh was entitled to 70 days parole and 21 days furlough every year and he was released from the jail within the purview of the law. He said that not only Gurmeet Singh, but 6,000 other criminals too were entitled to similar temporary release.

Haryana BJP media chief Arvind Saini, denied the allegations, saying that the parole was being granted within the purview of the law.