[The violence began Friday afternoon in Panchkula, in the northern state of Haryana, where an estimated 100,000 followers had gathered, awaiting the verdict in the trial. Singh’s supporters were seen weeping and fainting as they waited for the judge to rule on the long-running case.]
By Vidhi Doshi
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A convoy of Indian Army
soldiers patrol the town where the headquarters of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect
is based,
in Sirsa, in the northern Indian stateof Haryana, Saturday,
Aug. 26. (AP/AP)
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NEW
DELHI — Hundreds of people
have been arrested in a north Indian city after protests over the rape
conviction of a religious sect leader turned violent, leaving 32 dead and more
than 200 injured.
Followers of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect were
there to support its chief, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, known as India’s
“rock-star baba” and the “guru of bling” for his garish, rhinestone-
studded costumes and on-screen performances.
In an anonymous letter in 2002, Singh was
accused of raping two female devotees, and in 2008 he was formally charged with
rape and intimidation.
The violence began Friday afternoon in
Panchkula, in the northern state of Haryana, where an estimated 100,000
followers had gathered, awaiting the verdict in the trial. Singh’s supporters
were seen weeping and fainting as they waited for the judge to rule on the
long-running case.
Media reports suggested that Singh has been
given a special cell at Sunaria jail as he awaits his sentencing on Monday. And
the Haryana government has come under sharp criticism for giving him special
treatment.
Haryana’s chief secretary, Depinder Singh
Dhesi, denied allegations that Singh was being held in a police guesthouse: “He
has been kept like a normal prisoner. In the whole case, if anyone had done any
sort of leniency in his duty, then required action will be taken.”
Judge Jagdeep Singh, who convicted the famous
guru, criticized the Haryana government for allowing such a volatile situation
to build up outside his courtroom. India’s Home Ministry directed the state
government to provide high-level security for the judge.
Followers started trickling into Panchkula a
week before the verdict was due. Many put down tarpaulins and squatted on the
streets outside the court.
By Friday, there were so many people on the
city’s streets that a sports stadium was prepared as a mass jail for arrested
protesters.
Clashes also spread to the town of Sirsa,
where Singh’s sect has its headquarters.
Eyewitnesses described protesters throwing
stones, setting vehicles ablaze and toppling media vans in Panchkula. In the
Indian capital of New Delhi, an empty train was set on fire.
Haryana Police Chief B.S. Sandhu said Friday
night that 550 people had been detained and that some weapons were recovered in
Panchkula.
An unnamed staff member from the sanitation
department at the Civil Hospital in Panchkula described to the Indian Express
newspaper seeing about a hundred people, some of them dead, on stretchers. “It
was a horrific scene inside [the] emergency [room],” the staff member was
quoted as saying. Cellphones in the pockets of corpses rang through the night,
the Express reported.
Doctors told reporters that many of those
admitted were police officers and that the death toll could rise because of the
number of those seriously injured.
The Times of India reported that the
government gave orders to fire at rioters after a senior police officer was
surrounded by an angry mob.
In a series of tweets, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi called for calm Friday night: “The instances of violence today
are deeply distressing. I strongly condemn the violence & urge everyone to
maintain peace,” he wrote.
Police fired shots in the air after the
violence erupted, using water cannons and tear gas to quell the crowds. About
600 soldiers were deployed.
After his conviction, Singh was flown out of
Panchkula. A minimum seven-year sentence is expected to be pronounced on
Monday.
Singh, who claims to have 60 million
followers and supernatural powers, has a penchant for appearing in
self-produced music videos and movies such as “MSG: The Messenger” and its
sequels, for which he co-wrote scripts, co-directed, and sang songs. In the
films he has superhero-like qualities, performing motorcycle stunts and killing
ghosts and aliens. In 2016, his song “Love Charger” was played by Jimmy Fallon
in a segment on “The Tonight Show.”
Followers defend Singh, saying he has set up
vast social welfare programs, including huge blood donation drives, and has
performed mass marriages for former sex workers.
But behind his flamboyant image, Singh and
his entourage are dogged by accusations of criminal activity.
In ongoing cases, Singh and members of his
inner circle have been accused of two murders and intimidation in attempts to
bury the accusations of rape.
