Clashes kill 32 in India as court convicts a guru of rape

At least 32 people were killed Friday when clashes broke out in northern India after a court convicted a controversial religious leader of raping two of his followers, sparking fury among tens of thousands of supporters who had gathered for the verdict. Authorities rushed hundreds of troops to the city of Panchkula after followers of guru Ram Rahim Singh torched cars went on a rampage throwing rocks and attacking television vans and setting fire to dozens of private vehicles. More than 100,000 were estimated to have gone to the city in Haryana state, where India's federal investigations agency had set up a special court to rule on the charge that he had raped two female devotees. Authorities said 32 people had been killed and around 180 injured after rioting broke out in Haryana, where many areas were now under curfew. More than 100,000 followers of guru Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh were estimated to have gone to the city in Haryana state, where India's Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) had set up a special court to rule on the charge that he had raped two female devotees.Singh has a vast following in Haryana, where he runs a spiritual movement that claims to have millions of devotees around the world. Authorities imposed an indefinite curfew in Panchkula, where mobile internet services had earlier been shut down and troops deployed ahead of the verdict. As news of Singh's conviction spread, police in the neighbouring Punjab state said a mob had set fire to a train station in Mukhtar district. "A large mob has set a train station on fire in Malout town. We have rushed forces and fire services to the spot," local police chief Sushil Kumar said as Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh appealed for calm. Media reports said Ram Rahim Singh had been taken into custody under military escort. He will be sentenced on August 28. "The court convicted Baba Ram Rahim Singh on rape charges," prosecutor Harinder Pal Singh Verma said after the closed hearing.

'Guru in bling'

The 50-year-old self-styled "godman" is known as the "guru in bling" for his penchant for bejewelled costumes, although the source of his apparently vast wealth is unclear. The rape case was brought against him after an anonymous letter was sent to then Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2002 accusing him of repeatedly raping the sender and several other women in the sect. This file photo taken on September 8, 2015 shows Indian chief of the religious sect Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh at a news conference to launch the score for his film ‘MSG-2 The Messenger’ in Mumbai AFP  A judge asked the Central Bureau of Investigations to look into the accusations, but it took years to trace the alleged victims and it was not until 2007 that two women came forward and filed charges. India has been rocked by numerous scandals involving popular ascetics claiming to possess mystical powers, and Singh is no stranger to controversy. In 2015 he was accused of encouraging 400 followers to undergo castration at his ashram so they could get closer to god. He also stood trial for conspiracy over the murder of a journalist in 2002. He describes his sect as a social welfare and spiritual organisation.

Messenger of God

Speaking before his conviction, supporters who had gathered in Panchkula credited him with turning their lives around, with some saying his organisation had helped them kick an addiction to alcohol. Singh's work has angered mainstream religious leaders in India, particularly Sikhs who say he insults and belittles their faith. There were protests in the Sikh-dominated state of Punjab over Singh's 2015 appearance in a film entitled "MSG: The Messenger of God", which showed him performing miracles, preaching to thousands and beating up gangsters while singing and dancing. Singh was driven from his home town to the court in a vast convoy that Indian media said was made up of over 100 vehicles. Television images showed devotees lining the streets, many of them sobbing uncontrollably. Roads leading to the court have been barricaded off and three stadiums set aside as makeshift prisons in case of trouble after the verdict.