'Yeshu Yeshu' Punjab pastor Bajinder Singh gets life term for rape
A court in Mohali sentenced the so-called Bajinder Singh on charges of rape, voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation
A self-styled pastor in Punjab, who claimed to perform miracle healings and famous for his viral 'Yeshu, Yeshu' videos, was on Tuesday sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of raping a woman in 2018.
A court in Mohali sentenced Bajinder Singh on charges of rape, voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation.
Woman seeks protection
The woman who had been raped hailed the ruling.
"He (Bajinder) is a psycho and will do the same offense after coming out of jail. So, I want him to stay in the prison,” media reports quoted the unnamed survivor as saying. “A lot of girls (victims) have won today,” she added.
She urged the police to provide her and other woman victims of the self-styled godman security since she feared retaliatory attacks following the verdict.
Also read: Punjab pastor Bajinder Singh booked for sexual harassment; who is he?
The rape
The incident of rape happened at Zirakpur in Mohali. Bajinder Singh had allegedly lured her with promises that he would take her abroad.
After raping her at his residence in Mohali, he made a video and threatened to upload it on social media if she did not agree to his demands. Five other accused in the case were acquitted.
Who is Bajinder?
Born into a Hindu Jat family in Haryana’s Yamunanagar, Bajinder Singh embraced Christianity 15 years ago while in prison in a murder case.
After being a pastor for a while, he launched his own ministry, Church of Glory and Wisdom, in 2016.
He attracted a huge following by claiming to perform miracle healings at mass gatherings. He promised to cure diseases like HIV and muteness, and posted his 'miracles' on his YouTube channel.
Also read: Punjab: IISER scientist killed during parking dispute in Mohali
‘Yeshu, Yeshu’ videos
He described himself as ‘Prophet Bajinder Singh’ on Instagram and was famous for his Mere Yeshu Yeshu songs, which he sang after performing so-called miracles. These videos went viral on social media.
However, a video also went viral, which showed the so-called pastor arguing and slapping a woman besides throwing some papers at her.