A court here today extended the police remand of jailed Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's close associate Honeypreet Insan till October 13.
She was arrested in connection with the violence that followed the sect head's conviction in a rape case.
The Haryana Police had sought the remand of Ms Priyanka Taneja (36), widely known as Honeypreet Insan, who calls herself the adopted daughter of the Dera chief, for nine more days.
Police sought a nine-day remand of Ms Honeypreet but the court after hearing arguments sent her to three days in police custody, Ms Honeypreet's counsel SK Garg Narwana told media persons after the hearing in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Rohit Vats.
Mr Narwana said he had opposed police remand for Ms Honeypreet.
Police sought Ms Honeypreet's remand on the ground that they wanted to take her to other states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh.
The court also extended the police remand of another woman, Ms Sukhdeep Kaur, who was arrested along with Ms Honeypreet from the Zirakpur-Patiala road in Punjab on October 3, to three more days, the defence counsel said.
On October 4, the court had sent Ms Honeypreet and Ms Kaur to six days in police custody. Ms Honeypreet and Ms Kaur were produced before the Panchkula court amid tight security today.
During the six-day remand, Ms Honeypreet and Ms Kaur were taken to Bathinda by the Haryana Police where she was reportedly hiding before her arrest.
Ms Honeypreet and Ms Kaur were questioned by the Haryana Police in connection with the violence that followed the sect head's conviction on August 25.
Ms Honeypreet was at the top of a list of 43 people "wanted" by the state police in connection with the violence. The Haryana Police had on September 1 issued a look-out notice against Ms Honeypreet and another key aide of the Dera chief, Mr Aditya Insan, following apprehensions that they might try to "escape from the country".
An arrest warrant was also issued against Ms Honeypreet, and two key Dera functionaries mr Aditya Insan and Mr Pawan Insan.
Her name has been included in an FIR in which Dera functionaries Mr Aditya Insan and Mr Surinder Dhiman, among others, were booked on the charge of sedition, inciting violence and arson, the police had said earlier.
Following the conviction of the Dera chief, violence had erupted in Panchkula and Sirsa claiming 41 lives. The Dera chief has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping two female disciples.
