Jagdeep Singh: Know all about the judge who sentenced Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim to 20 years in prison

The CBI special court's verdict on Dera Chief Ram Rahim being sentenced to 20 years in jail has been making headlines all across the media and drawn the attention of crores of people across the country.

As the country hailed the strong judgement pronounced on the self styled 'Godman' on Monday, a Special CBI Judge needs a noteworthy mention for being bold and courageous enough to withstand all the pressures and deliver the quantum of sentence, holding the ethos and values of the judiciary in high esteem.  

The day truly belonged to Jagdeep Singh, the special CBI judge who was flown into Rohtak jail on Monday morning in a helicopter to pronounce the sentence on self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. The judge sentenced the ‘godman’ to 20 years in prison. In the legal fraternity, Jagdeep is known for being a thorough professional with superlative competence and a firm mind.

Eyewitnesses recall how he didn’t let the tense atmosphere in Haryana’s Panchkula where more than 200,000 dera followers had camped in the city to deter his moral courage as he walked into the court on Friday. Soon after, Singh convicted Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in a 15-year-old rape case, filed by two of his women followers.

A very competent, tough and upright judge with a no-nonsense attitude. That is how Singh is described by his colleagues in the legal fraternity. An additional district and sessions judge rank official, Singh was designated as the CBI special judge in 2016. This is his second posting as a judicial officer.

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Singh joined the Haryana judicial services in 2012 and was posted at Sonepat. The CBI court posting, which is generally given after a lot of checks by the high court administration, is his second posting.

Prior to joining the judicial service, he was a Punjab and Haryana high court lawyer. “Singh likes keeping a low profile and is a man of few words. But all those who know him vouch for his competence and integrity,” said a lawyer who has practiced with him. Singh, who hails from Haryana, took up both civil and criminal cases between 2000 and 2012.

Singh completed his law degree from Panjab University (PU) around 2000. “He was a bright student,” recalled a Haryana judicial officer, who has known him since his Panjab University days. “He is considered a very hardworking and upright officer,” he added.

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Jagdeep hit the headlines in September 2016, when on his way from Hisar to Panchkula, he played a Good Samaritan and rushed four people, who were seriously injured in a road accident, to a hospital in Jind district. As per reports, he first called up emergency to rush an ambulance, but when the operator told him, “Will the ambulance come flying?”, he stopped a private vehicle and himself took the injured to the hospital.