Bajinder Singh

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Bajinder Singh
Pastor Bajinder Singh.jpg
Bajinder Singh preaching at his church
Born (1982-09-10) 10 September 1982 (age 43)
Organization(s)Church of Glory and Wisdom
Criminal statusIncarcerated
Convictions 2018 rape case [1]
Criminal charge Rape
Penalty Life imprisonment
Imprisoned atCentral Jail, Patiala [2]
Website Official website

Bajinder Singh (born 10 September 1982) is an Indian Evangelical Christian pastor and a convicted rapist. [3] [4] [5] He gained popularity for his claimed miracle healings and for attracting a considerable following through his ministry, the Church of Glory and Wisdom. [6]

Contents

His ministry operates several branches in Punjab and other locations, and he is known for holding large prayer meetings that are often accompanied by public performances. [7] He was sentenced to life imprisonment on 1 April 2025.

Background

Baljinder was born in Yamunanagar, Haryana , into a Hindu family and holds a degree in mechanical engineering. [8] He was jailed for murder during the early 2000s. [9] [10]

After his release, he began conducting prayer meetings in 2012. His ministry claims to offer miraculous healings and solutions to various health ailments. [11]

Early incidents

Controversy

In 2018, he was arrested in connection with a rape case involving a woman from Zirakpur, Punjab. [10] It was alleged that he sexually assaulted the victim under the pretext of offering her travel opportunities abroad. Various families have also accused him of exploiting vulnerable members of the community through financial fraud, including demanding large sums of money for healing services that alleged did not produce results. [13]

Bajinder was arrested by Punjab police on accusations of rape and sexual abuse by a woman who attended the church. [14] [15]

In March 2025, at the same time as the sexual abuse case, a video went viral showing Bajinder assaulting a man and a woman in his office. [16] On 28 March 2025, he was found guilty in the 2018 rape case by a local court in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, and sentenced to life imprisonment. [1] [17] [18]

Investigations

2023

Between 31 January and 1 February 2023, the Income Tax Department carried out simultaneous raids on about 50 officials in different cities including Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Amritsar, New Chandigarh, Mohali, and Kurali, and on the premises of some churches. [19] [20] The 16-hour raids are stated to have led to the seizure of approximately ₹2 crore in un Accounted money and documentation concerning properties, assets, foreign donations, application of donations, and establishment of overseas centres in cities including Dubai and Mauritius. [21]

2025

In August 2025, Singh, lodged in a life sentence on the earlier encounter, was produced before Bharatpur under a production warrant. He was involved in an investigation related to a racket of religious conversion. [22] He was probed for the mass conversion in February 2024 held at Sonar Haveli in Atal Bandh, Bharatpur. [23] The incident was a case of vulnerable persons being hired guaranteed, children and women, also sickly young men, with promises of food, drinks & money gift. [24] Images of politicians were displayed on large television screens and audio players played videos of them, while audience members were invited to step on pictures of Hindu deities, according to reports. [25]

Religious literature was seized from the premises and 3 individuals were detained as part of the investigation. Officials also uncovered money transactions associated with his accounts, including international funds that had allegedly been siphoned off. He was presented in Bharatpur court on August 23, 2025, and remanded to 15 days judicial custody at Sewar Prison. The next day Rajasthan Police handed him back to the Mansa Prison. [26] [27]

Influence

Bajinder has gained influence in Punjab through his engagement with celebrities and politicians. [28] He invites celebrities from the entertainment industry and local politicians to participate in his church prayer meetings and functions, which often leads to increased attendance and awareness. [29] Many people have publicly supported his events which has led to allegations of promoting celebrities. [30] [31] [32]

References

  1. 1 2 "'Yeshu Yeshu Prophet' Bajinder Singh Found Guilty In 2018 Rape Case". www.ndtv.com. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  2. Barinderjit Saluja (2 April 2025). "Pentecostal pastor Bajinder Singh to spend life in prison for rape". The Times of India .
  3. "Pastor Bajinder embraced Christianity while in jail in murder case". The Tribune. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  4. Vasudeva, Vikas (1 April 2025). "Pastor Bajinder Singh sentenced to life for repeated rape in Punjab". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  5. Kumar, Nitin (28 March 2025). "Bajinder, self-proclaimed pastor, convicted in 2018 rape case, sentencing on April 1". India TV News. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  6. Kaur, Surinder (25 April 2025). "India Celebrity Pastor Faces Life in Prison for Rape". Christianity Today. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  7. "Bajinder Singh: Christian preacher in India gets life in jail for raping woman". www.bbc.com. 1 April 2025. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  8. Sethi, Chitleen K. (11 January 2022). "Cure cancer, undo death: Punjab's Christian 'prophet, pastors' offer miracles, compete with deras". The Tribune. Retrieved 27 July 2025. Bajinder Singh has revealed little about himself on his social media accounts, but according to a Punjab Police intelligence report, he comes from a Hindu Jat family from Yamunanagar, Haryana, and has a degree in mechanical engineering.
  9. "How did Bajinder Singh, who was once jailed for murder case, become hugely popular Christian religious leader?". www.india.com. Retrieved 28 December 2024.
  10. 1 2 "A self-styled faith healer held for raping Zirakpur woman". Hindustan Times. 19 July 2018. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  11. Sethi, Chitleen K. (11 January 2022). "Cure cancer, undo death: Punjab's Christian 'prophet, pastors' offer miracles, compete with deras". ThePrint. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  12. 1 2 Sandhu, Kamaljit Kaur (3 March 2025). "Controversies, cases, viral clips: All about self-styled Punjab pastor Bajinder Singh". India Today. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  13. "Pastors amassed huge wealth in 4 years, links with cops under lens". The Tribune. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  14. "Case against 'yeshu yeshu' pastor Bajinder for sex harassment, mental torture,rape". Hindustan Times. 7 March 2025. Retrieved 16 March 2025.
  15. Kissu, Sagrika (6 March 2025). "Pastor Bajinder Singh is Baba Ram Rahim of Punjab Christians. Now, 'Papa' is in trouble". ThePrint. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
  16. "Another case against 'Yashu Yashu' pastor, this time over thrashing man, woman". 25 March 2025.
  17. "Pastor Bajinder Singh found guilty in 2018 sexual harassment case". 28 March 2025.
  18. "Christian preacher in India gets life in jail for raping woman". www.bbc.com. April 2025. Retrieved 1 April 2025.
  19. "Rs 2 crore seized in raids on pastors Bajinder Singh, Harpreet Deol in Punjab". The Tribune. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  20. "I-T dept raids premises linked to 2 Punjab pastors". The Indian Express. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  21. "I-T dept raids premises linked to 2 Punjab pastors". The Indian Express. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  22. "Pastor brought to Bharatpur from Punjab jail for probe into alleged religious conversion racket". The Times of India. 24 August 2025. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  23. "Bharatpur : धर्मांतरण मामले के मास्टरमाइंड प्रोफेट बजिंदर सिंह पंजाब के मानसा जेल से गिरफ्तार, कोर्ट ने 15 दिन के लिए भेजा जेल". Patrika News (in Hindi). Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  24. "Funding worth crores was coming from abroad, Prophet Bajinder Singh was brought from Punjab to Rajasthan in the conversion case". NDTV.
  25. "Already in Mansa jail for rape, pastor now faces probe in Bharatpur conversion case". The Indian Express. 26 August 2025. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  26. "धर्म परिवर्तन कराने वाले पादरी को मनसा जेल भेजा: 1 दिन भरतपुर की सेवर जेल में रहा, पुलिस प्रोडक्शन वारंट पर गिरफ्तार कर लाई थी - Bharatpur News". Dainik Bhaskar (in Hindi). 25 August 2025. Archived from the original on 31 August 2025. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  27. "रेप के आरोपी धर्मांतरण गैंग के सरगना पादरी को राजस्थान पुलिस ने चंडीगढ़ जेल से किया गिरफ्तार, जानें वजह,". Navbharat Times (in Hindi). Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  28. "Call of faith: Promising pull of Punjabi pastors". Hindustan Times. 19 February 2023. Archived from the original on 21 January 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  29. "Pastor makes rival villain with GulshanGrover over star-lit Christmas parties". The Times of India. 1 January 2024. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  30. "Tajpur's star studded Christmas event triggers controversy". The Tribune. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  31. "Amid hustle-bustle, BJP quietly reaches out to 'miracle performing' pastors". The Indian Express. 31 May 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024.
  32. "Chunky Panday, Aditya Pancholi and Sunil Pal Trolled For Attending Pastor Bajinder Singh's Event". News18. Retrieved 27 December 2024.