The CBI court in Panchkula has convicted Dera Sacha Sauda's high profile head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a rape case dating back to 2002. The quantum of sentence will be pronounced on August 28.

The case pertaining to the allegations against the dera chief of raping some of his female followers, dragged on for over 15 years and saw 200 hearings spread in 10 years. The judgement was pronounced at around 2.30 pm. The police immediately shifted Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to a rpison straight from the courtroom.

There was high drama at in the small town of Panchkula, where over a lakh of Dera chief's followers congregated. Since Wednesday, several parts of Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh were under a security lock down. Schools, colleges and government offices remained closed, and train and bus services have been curtailed. The army has been kept on a standby, while police and paramilitary forces are patrolling sensitive areas. Mobile internet and data services have been suspended in Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh for 72 hours.

Ahead of the verdict in the rape case against the Dera Sacha Sauda chief, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar asked people to maintain peace and said arrangements have been made to deal with all possible situations. Even Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim had released a video on Thursday night and asked his followers to abide by the law. "I had earlier appealed to maintain peace and calm and asked (followers) not to go to Panchkula. All those (followers) who are in Panchkula should return to their home," the Dera head had said.