Verdict shows all is not lost, govt betraying people: Chhatrapati’s son

Sirsa, August 26 : The special CBI court’s verdict against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh holding him guilty of raping dera sadhvis has come as a big hope for journalist Anshul Chhatrapati who has been fighting a protracted battle to get justice for the murder of his father.
Anshul’s father Ram Chhatrapati who published an evening daily ‘Poora Sach’ from Sirsa was shot at outside his residence on October 24, 2001 by two Dera followers as he had been writing about dera activities, including the anonymous letter relating to the rape of sadhvis written to the then PM.
Chhatrapati later died on November 21 and Ram Rahim Singh is facing murder charges in his case as well as for the murder of Ranjit Singh, brother of one of the sadhvis who deposed before the CBI court in rape case. “You can imagine how difficult it could be for a commoner like me to fight for justice against a person who has all the might of the state kneeling at his feet. I and my family always lived in fear because the state which was expected to provide us safety was actually honouring Ram Rahim Singh and giving him lakhs of rupees and tax waiver to his films at the expense of people’s money. Though I never lost faith in the judicial system of our country all these 16 years, the verdict has come as reassurance that all is not lost what if the elected government is ready to betray its people’s faith for the sake of a few votes,” Anshul says when The Tribune met him at his residence here on Saturday.He says while the BJP government in Haryana had stooped too low with the entire ministry seen in Ram Rahim’s attendance on several occasions, even the Congress and the INLD governments were no exception in the matter.
“These political parties have always used our cases against the Dera chief to blackmail him for votes,” he alleges. Asked if he is worried about his security, Anshul says the day it was known that the verdict can come any time, he requested the police to provide him more security, but nobody bothered and he was doing with the two cops provided to him.