Pentecostal pastor Bajinder Singh to spend life in prison for rape | India News

MOHALI: Evangelical Christian pastor Bajinder Singh, founder of Rhema Assembly Church in Punjab, was sentenced Tuesday to rigorous imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life along with a fine of Rs 1 lakh. A special court in Mohali announced the punishment after convicting the 42-year-old pastor on March 28 of raping a woman in 2018.
Earlier, Singh had been involved in a murder case in the early 2000s, leading to his imprisonment. He converted from Hinduism to Christianity while in jail and later became a self-proclaimed preacher. He was arrested following the conviction in the rape case and transferred to Patiala jail. According to the woman’s testimony, she met him at a roadside eatery and later attended his prayer meetings.
In Sept 2017, he called her to a restaurant in Zirakpur in Mohali district on the pretext of helping her travel abroad. He asked her to bring her passport and then took her to his flat, where he drugged and raped her while recording a video. The woman testified that Singh, known as the ‘Yeshu Yeshu Prophet’ and ‘Papa-ji’, later blackmailed her using the video and extorted money.