Pastor Bajinder Singh gets life imprisonment in 2018 rape case

The verdict was pronounced on Tuesday, April 1

A Mohali court on Tuesday awarded life imprisonment to self-styled pastor Bajinder Singh in a 2018 rape case. The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Vikrant Kumar pronounced the order, news agency PTI reported.

On March 28, Singh was pronounced guilty under sections 376 (rape), 323 (punishment for voluntary causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

The case against Singh was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by a woman at Zirakpur police station in the year 2018.

Ahead of the verdict in Punjab, tight security arrangements were put in place at the court complex.

The counsel for the victim, Anil Kumar Sagar, told reporters, "He (Singh) will remain behind bars till his last breath."

The victim, in her complaint, had alleged that Singh persuaded her by promising to take her abroad. The victim said that he raped her at his residence in Sector 63, Mohali, while also recording the act and threatened her to make it viral if she did not listen to his demands.

While trying to flee to London in 2018, Singh was arrested from the Delhi airport. However, he later got bail in the case. The Mohali court on March 3 issued a non-bailable warrant against him in the 2018 rape case.

After Singh was pronounced guilty in the case, the victim in the case told ANI, "He (Bajinder) is a psycho and will do the same offense after coming out of jail, so I want him to stay in prison. A lot of girls (victims) have won today. I request that DGP ensure our security since there is a possibility of attacks on us."

On February 28, Singh was booked in another sexual harassment case on the basis of the complaint lodged by a 22-year-old woman.