The Haryana Police on Friday submitted an affidavit before the Punjab and Haryana High Court giving details of the seven FIRs filed against self-styled godman Sant Rampal and his followers in connection with the November 18 operation at Satlok Ashram in Hisar. The court has now listed the matter for December 23.
In accordance with the court directions, Rampal was brought from Hisar, where he is in police custody. He was produced before the bench of Justice M. Jeyapaul and Justice Darshan Singh.
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Appearing before the court, Director General of Police S.N. Vashisht submitted an affidavit detailing the operation which was carried out by the police to nab Rampal for execution of the non bailable warrants issued against him by the High Court in a contempt case. He also submitted details of weapons and lethal articles recovered from the ashram; an account of other recoveries made; the 909 arrests made and the over 200 injuries sustained in the operation, as also the six casualties during it.
The Haryana DGP submitted that seven cases have been registered against Rampal and his followers for the violence which took place at the Ashram in Barwala, Hisar. Among the various charges, Rampal and his followers have also been booked for sedition and murder.
The court directed the DGP and Additional Chief Secretary Home of Haryana to keep the copies of the FIR with them and to produce them on the next date along with the details of the investigation.
The Haryana government also filed an affidavit giving details of the expenditure incurred in the operation. The Punjab government and the Chandigarh administration had earlier submitted before the court the amounts spent by them in dealing with the followers of Rampal during court hearings.
The counsel for Rampal, S.K. Garg, claimed before the court that no illegal firearms were recovered from the ashram. Talking to mediapersons after the hearing, he said the 10-12 weapons recovered by the police from the ashram were all licensed rifles.
Incidentally, two police personnel had sustained gunshot injuries in the firing from the ashram whereas the Haryana Police claim that not a single shot was fired by them despite the provocation.
The defence counsel also claimed that the Haryana Police had attacked journalists during the operation as it wanted to hide the brutal manner in which it had conducted it.
Mr. Garg said the issue of maintainability of the contempt case and it being heard by the Bench of the High Court was also raised during the hearing and it too would be heard on December 23.
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