Curfew in Sirsa relaxed for 12 hours, situation becoming normal

The curfew has been relaxed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in most parts of Sirsa.

Curfew is still effective in three villages near the Dera headquarter.

Schools and colleges  also opened on Tuesday which was shut even on Monday as the judge pronounced the quantum of imprisonment for Ram Rahim.

As the entire country waited with bated breaths, Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was sentenced to 20-year-jail term by a special Central Bureau of Investigation judge on Monday for raping  his Sadhvis (female followers) in 2002.

The judge was flown by a government helicopter to conduct court at a prison in Haryana's Rohtak to avoid any further violence.

Ram Rahim Singh will serve two consecutive 10-year jail terms, the CBI stated while clarifying the quantum of imprisonment.

He has also been fined Rs. 15 lakh in each case.

The prosecution demanded maximum punishment for the rape convict while the Dera chief's defence argued that Ram Rahim is a social worker and urged the judge to take a lenient view.

The CBI urged the judge to treat the case as 'rarest of rare' during its argument.

Reports said that the Dera chief broke down in court and pleaded for leniency while the judge was reading out the sentence.

Ram Rahim will be medically examined and then will don prison clothes as prisoner number 1997 at the Rohtak jail.

Ram Rahim was convicted by the CBI court on Friday in a rape case that dates back to 2002.

Following the verdict on Friday, Panchkula and Sirsa witnessed riots by the Ram Rahim followers resulting in 36 deaths.

On Monday, the security measures were upped and thousands of paramilitary troops and anti-riot police blocked all roads near the Rohtak prison.

Even the Army was kept on standby.

Image: Creative Commons.