The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recorded the jailed Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s statement in a case of alleged ‘forced’ castration of his 400 followers.

A case was registered against dera chief and others in January 2015 by CBI on the orders of Punjab and Haryana High Court.

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The court order came after a writ petition filed by a former follower Hans Raj Chauhan of the Sirsa-based dera, alleging that around 400 followers of the dera were ‘forcibly’ castrated at the Dera headquarters after the Gurmeet Ram Rahim claimed that the ‘castration would lead to realisation of God’, said media reports.

According to media reports, many castrated followers have come forward and stated that the castration was with ‘consent’.

The FIR was registered against Gurmeet and others under various charges, including criminal conspiracy for voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means.

Ram Rahim has been sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of over Rs 30 lakh for raping two woman followers of his dera. His conviction led to violence in Panchkula and Sirsa in Haryana, leaving 38 people dead and another 264 injured. Isolated incidents of violence were also reported from Delhi and several places in Punjab.

(With agency inputs)