Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Insan (born 15 August 1967) is the head of the Indian social group Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) since 1990 and a convicted rapist[2] and murderer.

[6] His films were negatively received by critics, with many considering them propaganda and criticising their poor quality,[7] although the production house claimed that several of them had grossed ₹1 billion.

[9][10][11][12] His conviction led to widespread violence from members of the DSS[13] and simultaneous clashes with the police, which left several dead and injured.

[16] On 28 May 2024 Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Gurmeet Ram Rahim and four others in 2002 Ranjit Singh murder case.

[22][23] Born into a Jatt Sikh family, his father Maghar Singh was a landlord, and his mother Naseeb Kaur was a housewife.

[24][25] Maghar was a devoted follower of the DSS leader Shah Satnam Singh, and Gurmeet accompanied his father to the dera.

They also have a son, Jasmeet, who is married to Husanmeet, a daughter of the Indian National Congress leader Harminder Singh Jassi.

A CBI report investigating criminal allegations against him mentioned that Ram Rahim's "crusades against drugs, alcohol, and prostitution" have gained him a "larger-than-life" image.

[33] Ram Rahim has organised drives for blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol screening that have been recognised by Guinness World Records.

[41][42][43][44][45][46][47] In early 2023, out on parole, Singh and his sect's volunteers organised two mega cleanliness campaigns across multiple locations in Haryana and Rajasthan.

[50][51][52][53][54][55][56] Almost a month after Singh got convicted, on 4 October 2017, The United Nations Water Body, on their official Twitter handle, had invited Ram Rahim and his "adopted daughter",[57] Honeypreet Insan, to support its World Toilet Day event which was held in November 2017.

[61][62] Ram Rahim has also established the MSG Bharatiya Khel Gaon, a sports village spread across 23 acres, in his Dera headquarters.

[68] Before the 2014 Haryana state elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Ram Rahim in order to attract the Dera Sacha Sauda followers.

After the report from Sirsa, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered the CBI to probe into the allegations levelled in the letter.

[80] On 25 August 2017, a special CBI court in Panchkula, Haryana, delivered its verdict in a sexual assault case regarding a former Dera sadhvi, finding Ram Rahim guilty of two counts of rape.

On 26 August 2017, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered the police to seize the properties of the group to compensate for the vandalism caused in protests by his supporters.

[103][104] Counter-terrorism expert Ajai Sahni has stated that the tensions between the Sikh community and the Dera have been exploited by the pro-Khalistan elements.

[112] On 20 June 2008, a group of Sikhs shouted anti-Dera slogans during Ram Rahim's visit to the Nirmal Lifestyles mall in Mumbai.

The Dera Sacha Sauda chief was named as an accused in the theft of 52 "bir's" (copy) of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhs and burning of a gurdwara and 49 Swaroops along with tearing and misusing 6 of them.

The previous SAD-BJP government in Punjab had handed over three cases—lodged in connection with the theft of a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib from a Burj Jawahar Singh Wala gurdwara, putting up of handwritten sacrilegious posters in Bargari and Burj Jawahar Singh Wala, and torn pages of the holy book found at Bargari—to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

[118] Currently death threats have been issued against him with placards saying "Satkar Committee, Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee and Shiromani Budha Dal Fauj please give justice, this evil person (Dusht) has killed the Guru Maharaj, defeat him through the sword (Kirpan) or through the pen (Kalam).

[120] In September 2017, the Hindu society Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, had denounced Ram Rahim Singh as a fake baba.

[121] On 24 October 2020, the jail superintendent granted Ram Rahim one day of parole, to allow him to visit his ailing mother in a hospital in Gurgaon.

[122][123] On 21 May 2021, Ram Rahim's parole application to visit his unwell mother was approved, which lead to his release for 12 hours, "from sunrise to sunset", under police protection.

[127] In June 2022, Ram Rahim was granted a 30-day parole, during which he stayed at his Dera Sacha Sauda Ashram, Barnawa, in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat.

[135] On 21 January 2023, Ram Rahim was given another parole for 40 days to stay at his Dera Sacha Sauda Ashram, Barnawa.

[149] Online Gurukul was scheduled to be a future project involving Ram Rahim speaking out against terrorism, along with playing in six different roles.