Haryana Police arrests IT wing chief of Dera Sacha Sauda, impounds vehicles of Ram Rahim's convoy

Having failed to trace absconding Dera aides, including Honeypreet Insan and Dr Aditya Insan among others, the Haryana Police has now tightened the noose around the Dera management and its other functionaries.

The police on Wednesday arrested the information technology wing chief of Dera Sacha Sauda on charges of removing hard discs from 60 computers, which were being used to record CCTV footage.

Identified as Vineet Kumar, the accused according to the police first deleted the footage and then removed the hard discs, which were recovered from a toilet constructed in a field nearby.

"During search operations, we recovered the hard discs, which are being scanned. The accused is being interrogated. We have managed to elicit crucial information from him and are expecting more leads", Haryana Police chief BS Sandhu said.

The police have also arrested the driver of the Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle, which on August 28 was set ablaze by the Dera supporters themselves.

There are allegations that the vehicle, which was set ablaze near the Kotli village located close by, contained incriminating documents that could have nailed the Dera chief.

The accused driver Harnail Singh lives in the Dera complex and has also worked as a mechanic. Costing around 1.5 crore, the Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle was purchased from Maharashtra in 2014.

65 VEHICLES IMPOUNDED

The Haryana Police chief said, "As many as 170 vehicles were part of Gurmeet Ram Rahim's cavalcade on August 25. Out of these, 65 have been impounded. Most of these are luxury vehicles."

"We have issued notices to the owners of these vehicles and they have been asked to join the investigation", Sandhu said.

Sandhu added that three out of eight Punjab Police officials, who were part of the commando group accused of plotting Ram Rahim's escape plan, have also been arrested.

Meanwhile, police have also decided to question the members of the Dera Management Committee, which has 45 members who are believed to be close aides of Gurmeet Ram Rahim.

DERA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON MAY BE QUIZZED  

The police may also quiz Dera Management Committee chairperson Vipassana Insan. The development comes after the arrest of a management committee member Govind.

Sources said that the police was under immense pressure from the government as it had so far failed to recover corroborating evidence against Gurmeet Ram Rahim and his henchmen.

There are allegations that the delay in crackdown on the part of the Haryana Police benefitted the Dera, which removed most of its ill-gotten cash and evidence after Gurmeet Ram Rahim's arrest.