Jailed Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s former driver Khatta Singh on Friday moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking to record a fresh statement into the case of killing of dera chief former manager Ranjit Singh.

A special CBI court had on September 25 dismissed a plea by Khatta Singh seeking to record a fresh statement in the murder case of Ranjit Singh.

“Earlier, Khatta Singh had retracted from his statement due to security concerns, but now he wants to speak the truth. He also has substantial and important evidence against the jailed dera chief,” said Singh’s counsel Navkiran Singh while talking to the mediapersons.

He added the HC has been moved on Friday seeking permission to record fresh statement by Khatta Singh.

The case will come up for hearing on October 3.

Rape convict Ram Rahim Singh is named as key conspirator into the killing of Ranjit Singh in 2002.

The special CBI court in Panchkula is hearing the cases of killing of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati and Ranjit Singh.

Khatta Singh had earlier given statement against Ram Rahim Singh in 2007 but he then retracted from his statement in 2012. He had moved an application in the CBI court on September 16 to testify against the Dera head. The defence counsel in the case had opposed the plea.

Ranjit Singh was shot dead in July 2002. He was killed for his suspected role in circulating an anonymous letter that alleged sexual exploitation of disciples by the dera head at his Sirsa headquarters, according to the prosecution.

The journalist, Chhatrapati was shot at in October 2002 after a newspaper owned by him, ‘Poora Sach’, published the anonymous letter narrating how women were being sexually exploited by the sect head.

Ram Rahim, who is currently lodged in the district Jail at Sunaria near Rohtak, was convicted by the CBI court in Panchkula on August 25 on two counts of rape of female disciples in 1999. He was later awarded 20 years of rigorous imprisonment (10 years in each rape case) by the CBI court, and a fine of over Rs 30 lakh.

His conviction on August 25 had led to widespread violence when scores of Dera supporters came out on streets and damaged property worth crores in Panchkula and Sirsa.