Castrating followers, abduction and illegal weapons: History of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's controversies

A special CBI court in Panchkula will reveal the fate of the Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh on Friday in a 15-year-old rape case. 

In 2002, two women members of his sect had accused him of raping and sexually exploiting them in Haryana's Sirsa. The rape allegations became public after a woman wrote an anonymous letter to then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee narrating how the spiritual leader raped her and other women members of DSS.

This is not the only controversy Singh has courted till now. He has been accused of murdering people and castrating his followers as well.

Read below Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's brushes with controversies till now:

Accused of murder

Singh has been accused of murdering DSS member Ranjit Singh and a Sirsa-based journalist named Ram Chander Chattrapati.

While the journalist reported on the activities within the DSS in his paper Poora Sach, Ranjit Singh was believed to have been involved in sending the letter detailing the rape allegations to Vajpayee.

When he mocked the 10th guru of Sikhs – Guru Gobind Singh

In 2007, he sparked another controversy when he dressed up as the 10th guru of Sikhs – Guru Gobind Singh – in an advertisement that was considered blasphemous by a section of Sikhs.

This move ignited violent clashes between Sikhs and his followers, leaving hundreds of people injured.

He forced castration of his 400 followers?

In 2012, Hansraj Chauhan, a former DSS follower, filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court alleging that 400 followers, including him, were castrated inside the ashram on Singh's order. In 2014, the CBI booked Singh in connection with the case.

A year later, CBI found evidence against Singh in the mass castration case, according to Mail Today. Chauhan said Singh claimed the followers would be able to realise God after castration.

Illegal weapons

In 2014, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered that activities of the DSS should be monitored after reports of illegal arms training surfaced online.

However, after inquiries by the government, it was revealed that there was no evidence of illegal arms training at the DSS headquarters in Sirsa in Haryana.

Abduction of Guddi Devi

A criminal case was filed against Singh in 2005 for the alleged kidnap of a woman named Guddi Devi. Kamlesh Kumar filed a complaint with the Jawahar Circle police station in Jaipur claiming Singh and his followers had kidnapped his wife Guddi, who had gone to the headquarters in Haryana to attend a Satsang.

A case was lodged against Singh, Dera managing director DPS Dutta and others under Sections 344, 346 (wrongful confinement), 365 (kidnapping or abducting) and 120b (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, according to Hindustan Times.

Singh's MSG movies controversies

The then censor board chief Leela Samson resigned in 2015 and it was said that her exit came after controversy over Singh's Messenger of God (MSG).

The film got clearance from Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT). Samson had said about it: "It is a mockery of Central Board of Film Certification. My resignation is final."

Before the film hit screens, Punjab and Haryana were put on high alert after Sikh organisations and leaders protested against its release.