New Delhi, Feb 28 – The Supreme Court on Friday refused to hear the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee’s (SGPC) plea challenging the temporary release of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, advising the petitioners to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court instead.
A bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra noted the dera chief’s counsel’s objection to the maintainability of the PIL before the high court, which had previously disposed of the matter, stating it was filed against an individual.
“In that view of the matter, we are not inclined to consider the present petition,” the bench ruled.
SGPC had moved the apex court against an August 2024 Punjab and Haryana High Court order that had dismissed its PIL.
The high court had stated that any application for temporary release by Ram Rahim should be considered by the competent authority “without arbitrariness or favoritism.”
The SGPC’s counsel alleged that the Haryana government misused its powers under Section 11 of the Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Act, 2022, by repeatedly granting paroles and furloughs to Ram Rahim between 2022 and 2024.
The dera chief’s counsel argued that the PIL before the high court in 2023 was politically motivated, as it solely targeted him.
The Supreme Court acknowledged the high court’s directive that any application for Ram Rahim’s release must be handled strictly per the 2022 Act. However, the SGPC pointed out that despite this ruling, the dera chief was granted parole in January 2025.
“Challenge that now and file a contempt petition before the high court if authorities have violated its order,” the apex court advised.
Ram Rahim, serving a 20-year sentence for raping two disciples, was sentenced in 2017. In a separate case, the Supreme Court on January 3 agreed to examine the CBI’s appeal against his acquittal in the 2002 murder of Ranjit Singh, a former manager of the sect.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court had cleared him of the charges in May 2024, citing an unreliable investigation.
