Gurmeet Ram Rahim convicted of rape: Dera followers vandalise media vehicles in Sirsa, security beefed up

Sirsa: A video-journalist of a TV channel was injured when his crew was attacked by followers of Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, moments after a CBI court convicted him in a rape case on Friday. Vehicles of media organisations were also attacked. The injured video-journalist was being rushed to a hospital. Security was beefed up with a heavy deployment of police and paramilitary personnel around the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters here as a special CBI court in Panchkula found the head of the sect guilty in a rape case. [caption id=“attachment_3973937” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s followers. PTI[/caption] Barricades were put up at a distance of 3 kilometers from the Dera headquarters and the security personnel was equipped with tear gas shells and water cannons. The mounted police were also pressed into service. Hundreds of Haryana police and paramilitary personnel, drawn from the CRPF and the BSF, were kept on a maximum alert in anticipation of protests by the Dera chief’s followers. Senior police officials said the security had been tightened further after the verdict and the overall situation was under control. “We have deployed an adequate number of security personnel to tackle any eventuality. The situation has been under control so far,” said AS Dhillon, Inspector General of Police, Hisar range. The Army was called out in Sirsa on Friday with senior police officials carrying out a flag march outside the sect headquarters. “Two companies of the army from Hisar district have been called out to maintain law-and-order in Sirsa,” a top police officer said. Scores of jawans, including 15,000 paramilitary personnel, have been deployed in the sensitive areas of Punjab and Haryana. Click here for LIVE updates