Rampal (spiritual leader)
Indian religious leader / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Rampal (born Rampal Singh Jatin on 8 September 1951) is an Indian religious cult leader and murder convict of the Kabir Panth religious denomination.[2]
Rampal | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Rampal Singh Jatin (1951-09-08) 8 September 1951 (age 72) |
| Other names | Rampal Dass |
| Education | Diploma in Civil Engineering |
| Alma mater | Govt. Polytechnic Nilokheri |
| Occupation | Leader of religious sect |
| Organization | Satlok Ashram |
| Predecessor | Swami Ramdevanand |
| Details | |
| Country | India |
| State(s) | Haryana |
Date apprehended | 19 November 2014 |
| Imprisoned at | Hisar Central Jail-2[1] |
| Website | jagatgururampalji |
He is a disciple of Swami Ramdevanand, a local seer and Hindu saint from the Garib Das Panth sect; in 1994, Swami Ramdevanand selected him as his successor, causing Rampal to quit his job as a junior engineer.[3] He and his followers established Satlok Ashram in 1999 in Rohtak, Haryana[4] and would go on to start several other ashrams in Jhajjar and Rohtak.[3]
In 2006, Rampal publicly objected to certain parts of Satyarth Prakash, a central book of Arya Samaj.[5] In July 2006, a violent confrontation between the followers of Arya Samaj and the supporters of Rampal took place at the Satlok Ashram, leading to the death of an Arya Samaj follower. Rampal was accused of triggering the confrontation and charged and arrested for murder.[5] After 21 months in jail, he was released on bail in 2008.[6]
However, in 2014, authorities again ordered his arrest on contempt charges after Rampal repeatedly failed to appear in court.[7] Police then attempted to storm the Satlok Ashram, where they violently clashed with Rampal's followers, trying to prevent his arrest. The standoff between the police and his followers would injure multiple people, including those from media crews,[2] and six people were killed during the week-long siege.[7][8] Afterwards, Rampal was arrested and taken to Chandigarh to be tried.[7] He was acquitted of charges on 20th December 2022.[9]
Rampal was charged with wrong confinement, murder, sedition, among other charges. In 2018, he and 26 of his followers were found guilty of murder (among other offences) and were sentenced to life imprisonment for the six deaths during the 2014 standoff.[10]