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He was India’s ‘guru of bling’, the colourful cult leader who was a figure of devotion to some, and a figure of fun to others.

Self-styled ‘godman’ Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, leader of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, claimed to have supernatural powers and some 60 million followers worldwide.

The bearded mystic became known for his outlandish clothes and flashy jewellery, his love of over-sized motorbikes, and his extravagant films in which he appeared as a singing, dancing superhero, beating up gangsters and killing ghosts and aliens.

But Singh’s fantastical world came crashing to the ground in August 2017 when he was sentenced to 20 years in jail for raping two women at his sect’s headquarters in the town of Sirsa, northern India.

The conviction sparked deadly protests as his faithful supporters went on a rampage in towns across the country, leaving at least 41 people dead and hundreds injured.

But as police began to investigate Singh and his Dera cult further, sealing off the 700-acre walled compound where he lived with thousands of his followers, even more disturbing allegations began to emerge.

They included claims that he ordered the murder of a local journalist who had been investigating claims the cult leader had sexually abused women at the Dera headquarters in Sirsa.

Last week Singh, 51, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder in October 2002.

His alleged involvement in another murder, of former Dera manager Ranjit Singh, who released details of how women were being sexual exploited by the sect leader, is set to be heard in court next month.

Many are bracing themselves for further revelations - and charges - as more dark secrets from inside the cult emerge.

(Image: AFP)

Among the claims being investigated are that the spiritual leader ordered the castration of 400 male devotees in 2015, telling them that “castration would lead to realisation of God through him” - more likely a way of ensuring that only Singh was able to have his way with the cult’s female devotees.

Police who entered the cult’s huge compound made several other finds which appear to back up claims of the guru’s less than holy character.

Investigators found a secret tunnel connecting Singh’s bedroom to the compound’s female dormitory.

A second tunnel connects his bedroom to an illegal fireworks factory, where they found AK 47 cartridges, 84 cartons of fire crackers and chemicals, and hundreds of pairs of shoes, designer clothing and caps.

Police also said they had dug up a number of skeletons in the grounds, leading to rumours that they were the bodies of “dissenters” who had been killed by Singh or his followers.

A bizarre list detailing what they found inside the secretive complex sheds new light on the activities of the cult, as well as the life of luxury lived by the spiritual leader, surrounded by his devoted followers.

(Image: AFP)

Investigators said they discovered a “7-star MSG resort’ complete with replicas of “the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, the Kremlin and Disney World”.

They also said they found an illegal skin bank, evidence of illegal abortions, and a “township” with schools, a sports village, a hospital, a shopping mall and a cinema showing films starring Singh as a motorcycle-riding superhero.

Born into a family of Sikhs in a poor northern India village, Singh was initiated into the Dera Sacha Sauda sect at the age of seven and took over as its leader aged just 23.

The sect describes itself as a social welfare and spiritual organisation, and describes its activities as "helping in road accidents, working for the protection of daughters from heinous fetal murder and solemnising the marriages of harlots by inspiring them to quit this abhorrent profession."

Flamboyant Singh quickly became a cult figure himself, portraying himself as one of India’s ‘godmen’ who claim to possess mystical powers.

He describes himself on Twitter as "Spiritual Saint/Philanthropist/Versatile Singer/Allrounder Sportsperson/Film Director/Actor/Art Director/Music Director/Writer/Lyricist/Autobiographer/DOP."

Calling himself ‘Rock Star Baba’, he starred in his own movies and music videos, in which he is almost always a superhero who saves the world.

His 2015 film 'MSG: The Messenger Of God' shows him performing miracles, preaching to thousands and beating up gangsters while singing and dancing.

He is usually credited in his films as actor, director, writer and songwriter, with one film being credited in 30 different roles.

And his performances at his rock concerts became notorious for daredevil stunts, like singing while being suspended 9m above the ground on a moving crane.

(Image: Hindustan Times)

Bizarely, Singh also holds 19 Guinness Book of Records for feats such as “largest vegetable mosaic” and “largest finger painting".

Before his arrest, Singh’s popularity meant he held huge political influence in India - Dera’s support for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Haryana’s 2014 assembly elections is thought to have shifted the scales in favor of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party.

Singh, who has an estimated net worth of £26million, also held what is known as Z+ security cover, which is only reserved for high-risk individuals such as cabinet ministers and supreme court judges. Only 36 people in India are under that level of security cover, which is provided by the government.

His celebrity status, God-like status and political clout quickly ended, however, after details began to emerge of his sexual misdemeanours in 2017, followed by accusations of homicide.

And despite the violent protests following his arrest, his followers’ loyalty was short-lived, and over the past two years most have gradually dispersed and disbanded.

Today, with each new squalid revelation, Singh is increasingly seen as the flawed human being he really is.