(MENAFN- IANS) Chandigarh, Aug 5 (IANS) Controversial Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, convicted for rape and murder, on Tuesday again came out of the high-security jail in Haryana's Rohtak city. This is his third release this year, and 14th since his conviction in 2017.

The last parole was just three months ago, and this time it is for 40 days.

His release is said to coincide with his birthday, which falls on August 15. Earlier, he was granted furlough for 21 days in April and parole for 30 days in January.

Ram Rahim will stay in his Sirsa dera, the third time to stay there since his 2017 conviction in rape cases.

In his previous parole or furloughs, he was not allowed to stay in Sirsa but permitted to reside at the Shah Satnam Ashram in Barnava in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat district.

His conviction on August 25, 2017, had led to violence in Panchkula and Sirsa, leaving 41 people dead and over 260 injured.

The Dera Sacha Sauda chief has been patronised by political leaders and parties in Punjab and Haryana for nearly two decades due to his ability to influence the votes of his followers.

On every occasion, Anshul Chhatrapati, son of slain journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati, for whose murder Ram Rahim is serving a life sentence, has been objecting to the granting of parole.

Ram Rahim is currently lodged at the high-security Sunaria jail in Rohtak, 250 km from the state capital Chandigarh.

In the past, the high court had rejected Ram Rahim's parole plea for attending the wedding ceremony of his foster daughters.

The self-styled godman was sentenced to 20 years in jail in August 2017 for raping two women. A special CBI court in Panchkula in 2019 also sentenced him and three others to life imprisonment for the murder of a journalist over 16 years ago.

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