Z-land where even a ‘Dead’ Baba gets security cover

Radha Soami Satsang Beas Dera chief Gurinder Singh has also been secured with Z-plus cover for the last many years.
Radha Soami Satsang Beas Dera chief Gurinder Singh.
Radha Soami Satsang Beas Dera chief Gurinder Singh.

CHANDIGARH: Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim was accorded eight security guards by the Punjab Police, besides Z-plus security cover from Haryana Police. “Just before the Punjab Assembly elections this year, there was a move to provide security cover for one of Ram Rahim’s key aids, who is in the political wing of the Dera, but the proposal was turned down,” said a senior police functionary.

But Ram Rahim is not alone. Last year, the Punjab Police gave Z-plus security cover to Satguru Uday Singh, head of Bhaini Sahib Dera in Ludhiana following the murder of Namdhari matriarch Chand Kaur near the Dera in April. Singh now has around 40 police personnel, including commandos and vehicles guarding him.

Radha Soami Satsang Beas Dera chief Gurinder Singh has also been secured with Z-plus cover for the last many years. Similarly, Dera Sach Khand Ballan chief Sant Niranjan Das also enjoys Z-category security cover of Punjab Police. The Dera has a huge following in Doaba region besides other parts of the state. Niranjan had earlier survived an attack in 2009 in Vienna (Austria) in which his deputy was killed.

Baba Piara Singh Bhaniara, chief of a sect based at Dhamiana village in Ropar, has been given Z-category security by the state police for the last 10 years. Ironically, Punjab Police is also securing a ‘dead’ baba. Divya Jyoti Jagriti Sansthan (DJJS) head Ashutosh Maharaj was provided Z-plus security cover in 2009.

He was declared clinically dead on January 29, 2014. Ever since, his body has been preserved in a freezer by his followers at the DJJS headquarters as they claim he has gone into a state of meditation and would return. His Dera is at Nurmahal in Jalandhar district. His Z-category security cover still remains.

Who is Eligible?

Security cover is given according to the threat perception obtained from the local police and the state intelligence wing. Those under the Z-plus and Z-category cover get pilot vehicle, besides a couple of escort vehicles and guards at their residence, and also personal security officers.

What it Costs Taxpayers

Each protectee approximately costs the state exchequer `10-12 lakh per month in salary of the personnel deployed with him, and the fuel and maintenance of police vehicles in their cavalcade.

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