Dera chief arrives in Bangalore, packed off to Mysore

Dera Sacha Sauda chief Baba Ram Rahim Singh, who arrived in Bangalore amid growing protests against him by the Sikh community across the country, was packed off to an undisclosed location in Mysore near here.

Police said Singh arrived in Bangalore along with 27 of his followers from Pune enroute to New Delhi on Saturday. But, the Singh was not allowed to board a flight to New Delhi in the wake of intelligence reports that the national capital was not safe for him. He left for Mysore by road late in the evening.

With Sikh anger against the killing of a person belonging to their community by Singh’s body guard in Mumbai spreading to different parts of the country, security personnel at Bangalore international airport prevailed upon the chief of the controversial religious cult against proceeding to New Delhi as planned in view of the threat to his life.

Baba Ram Rahim Singh, who was asked to stay put in the airport till evening, was sent to an undisclosed location in Mysore, about 140 kms from here, under heavy police cover.

However, the arrival of Singh in Bangalore has triggered anger among the City’s Sikh community. The Sikh community is planning to hold a prayer meeting and take out a protest march to Raj Bhavan to register their protest against Ram Rahim Singh’s presence in Bangalore.

The Sikh community in Bangalore has also expressed concern over Dera Sacha Sauda’s plans to set up a camp in Jalahalli on the outskirts of the City, which is already home to a large number of Sikhs particularly from the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Meanwhile, there were speculations that Ram Rahim Singh was camping at the Dera Sacha Sauda’s Prarthana Mandira spread across 2.5 acres of land at Siddalingapura on the Mysore-Bangalore highway.
The police has beefed up security at the Dera Sacha Sauda camp at Siddalingapura and banned entry of visitors. Singh, who enjoys Z plus category security, believed to have arrived in Mysore in a bullet-proof car.