November 2014 ‘Holy man’ jailed for child rape An Indian healer and self-styled ‘holy man’ has been jailed for 13 years for the rape of a 12-year-old girl, in what the judge called “a most vile fashion”. The 46-year-old, known as Charanjit, was sentenced in his absence on Tuesday after an adjournment last week when he was taken to hospital with chest pains and later underwent heart surgery. Belfast recorder Judge David McFarland said the man could be deported back to his native India at any time – now, or while serving his sentence, or on completion of the jail term. Charanjit, who claims to be a member of the Punjabi Armed Police, was said to have held himself out “as a holy man with apparent divine gifts” enabling him to “heal through the medium of water”. Judge McFarland said he then cruelly exploited his position to prey upon and manipulate the girl’s family to breach the trust they placed in him and abuse the girl for his own sexual gratification. “You abused the child in a most vile fashion,” he said. “You did this literally under the nose of the mother who was present in the home and waiting expectant in the next room, expecting some form of cure, when in fact her 12-year old daughter was being raped by you.” Judge McFarland said Charanjit’s actions fell into the most serious category as “it involved the sexual exploitation of a child and the use of religion to breach the trust placed in you”. The judge added that such actions may have led the victim’s parents to question their own faith. Charanjit, with an address at Twinburn Gardens in Newtownabbey, was convicted last month of a total of eight charges – including four of sexual assault and two each of rape and causing or inciting a child to engage in sex acts. Defence QC John Orr said that Charanjit continues to protest his innocence. He also claimed that, while awaiting sentence, his client “has been subject to violence from other prisoners”, cannot communicate due to the language barrier, and has been diagnosed with an adjustment order. Mr Orr also spoke of his client’s “very substantial weight loss” and asked the judge to make recommendations for his deportation to India, which he said would be a “more humane means of serving his sentence”. During his trial, the schoolgirl – now aged 14 – told how, in October 2013, she was brought to Charanjit to be treated for a stomach complaint, as he was known in the Indian community as a holy man or healer. The schoolgirl said that Charanjit diagnosed a stone in her stomach, before pulling down her pants and sexually abusing her while chanting: “Stone come out, come out stone.” Afterwards, she said he told her not to tell her parents, but to say he had felt her stomach. Although she questioned whether this was wrong, she trusted him as he was “a respected holy man”. On a second visit, a few weeks later, Charanjit told her that she had two options – she could undergo a painful operation to remove the stone or he could remove it for her. She said Charanjit “did the same thing again … everything the same” and that, on this second occasion, he told the girl to tell her family that she had passed the stone. The court learned that Charanjit began calling at the girl’s home, on the pretence of seeing how she was, but instead used the visits to lift up her clothing and touch her. When questioned by police, Charanjit, who returned from India to stand trial, denied anything inappropriate had happened. He claimed that he only prayed over a glass of water which was then given to the girl on one occasion. However, prosecutor Kate McKay said pre-sentence reports on Charanjit concluded that “the defendant assumed a paternal role in relation, not just to the injured party, but with other members of the family, who looked to him with some reverence”. Another report revealed the abuse has had a “significant negative impact” on the schoolgirl’s well-being, and that “absolutely no remorse has been shown to his victim” by Charanjit. October 2014 ‘Holy man’ found guilty of sexually abusing 12-year-old girl A “holy man” has been convicted of sexually abusing a girl who was brought to him with a stomach complaint. The man, known as Charanjit, 46, of Twinburn Gardens, Newtownabbey, County Antrim was found guilty at Belfast Crown Court. The jury returned a majority verdict after over five hours of deliberation. The charges against him included two counts of rape, sexual assault of a child and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. They relate to a period spanning from 30 September 2012 to 1 February 2013. He is due to be sentenced next month. During the trial, the victim, now aged 14, told the court that she was brought to Charanjit, as he was known in the Indian community, for treatment as he was considered a holy man or healer. She said that the man diagnosed her as having a stone in her stomach. The victim said that she visited him twice and was sexually abused on both occasions. The defendant denied the charges throughout the trial. However, the jury rejected his version of events. The judge remanded Charanjit in custody until he is sentenced in November.