Above: Dera Sacha Sauda supremo Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, (inset) The CBI court judge Jagdeep Singh who convicted him

The security detail of Panchkula’s additional district and sessions judge Jagdeep Singh was being reviewed by the Centre, immediately after he pronounced Dera Sacha Sauda supremo Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh guilty of double rape on Friday (August 25). While the announcement of the quantum of punishment is Monday, the Baba’s followers have already wreaked havoc in three states, burnt two buses and some vacant train rakes in Anand Vihar, and 30 have been killed and several hundreds injured so far.

Amid this complete chaos and zero control on law and order, especially by the Haryana government, led by BJP chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, the central administration has, at least, realised that the life of Judge Jagdeep Singh, who was designated as CBI judge in April 2016, was under threat. Hence the Centre has sent a special message to the Haryana administration to immediately enhance the security detail of the judge.

The Centre’s message says that Jagdeep Singh should be provided highest level of security in view of the threat perception. How the detail will be provided and by which agency—CRPF or CISF—will be decided by the home ministry after analysis of intelligence inputs.

This analysis, however, may not be as perfect as it is made out to be. It is mostly a subjective approach to a rather difficult situation. The entire irony of the situation is in the hypocritical approach of the government in the issue. A judge is now being provided the highest level of security, fearing reprisal from a man who even now enjoys Z level of security. The threat perception to Ram Rahim, proven guilty of rape, was supposedly from Punjab militants.

It is now that there is talk of the removal of this Z category security from Ram Rahim. This was after he was convicted.

—India Legal Bureau