Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, a self-styled spiritual guru and head of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, has moved to a prison in Rohtak. The rape convict is lodged in a special cell and the authorities had also made special arrangements. The jail authorities had brought mineral water bottles and an assistant to stay with him but later the authorities withdrawn the facilities due to the media pressure.  

The Special Court of CBI found Ram Rahim Singh guilty of raping two women followers in 2002. He made a dramatic entry at the court yesterday afternoon, driving 250 kilometres to Panchkula from Sirsa, where his sect is headquartered, in a bulletproof car. There were about 200 cars in his convoy as ardent devotees followed him.

After being convicted and arrested, the Dera head was taken to Rohtak by helicopter. Video from the court premises showed a woman carrying out several bags and pieces of luggage as he left.

After he landed in Rohtak, Ram Rahim was taken to a police guest house that served as a makeshift jail. He was shifted to a prison only much later in the evening.

In court yesterday, the self-styled godman, dressed in white clothes and with his long hair loose, stood with his hands folded in prayer and his eyes closed when the judge started reading the verdict. He will be sentenced on Monday.

After the judgement was announced, thousands of his followers gathered in Panchkula erupted in violence, attacking and setting on fire vehicles and public property and clashing with the police. There were clashes in Sirsa too. 31 people have died and about 250 have been injured.

There has been violence in other parts of Punjab and Haryana too, as well as incidents or arson in Delhi and Rajasthan.

Large gatherings have been banned in several parts of Delhi along the border with Haryana.