The acquittal of Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in the journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati murder case on Saturday has come ahead of the poll season in Haryana and Punjab.While the urban local body elections are due in Haryana and are likely to be held in April, the Assembly polls in Punjab are due in less than a year. In this context, his acquittal assumes significance in political circles.Though the dera chief’s acquittal in the journalist’s murder case is purely a court decision and the ruling BJP government in Haryana has absolutely no role to play in the matter, it is likely to go to the party’s advantage during election time, be it in Punjab or Haryana.The dera chief holds significant sway in the districts along the Haryana and Punjab borders, including Sirsa, Ambala, Kurukshetra, Hisar and others, where he has committed followers.Elections are due in the urban local bodies of Sonepat, Ambala and Panchkula, along with five other municipal committees and councils, according to information available.Also, the BJP is, presently, aggressively attempting to make inroads into Punjab where the Assembly elections are due early next year. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has already been tasked by the party top brass to lead this campaign. Though Ram Rahim, serving a 20-year sentence in another case, is not going to be able to walk out of jail, his acquittal in the murder case is likely to have a bearing on the Punjab elections as well.While BJP leaders are tight-lipped about the likely impact of his release, they emphasis that it was a court verdict and should not be linked to any election. “We cannot say anything about the impact of the acquittal on the politics of Punjab or Haryana,” a minister said.The dera chief and three others were convicted in 2019 for the murder of Chhatrapati in Sirsa in 2002.He is also serving a 20-year prison sentence handed down in 2017 for raping two of his disciples. So, despite the acquittal, he will continue to serve the sentence for the other convictions. Following his conviction in the murder case, the dera chief is currently lodged at Sunaria Jail in Rohtak.The dera chief’s parole and furlough, a legal right of any prisoner, have often sparked political debate due to their timing, most of these coming just before elections in Haryana or neighbouring states like Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.Leaders, in the past, have often questioned the timing of these releases.It may be pertinent to mention here that ahead of the 2024 Haryana Assembly elections, the Congress wrote to the Election Commission, requesting an order to prevent the possible parole to Ram Rahim during the enforcement of the model code of conduct. Citing media reports that he might be granted parole ahead of the elections, the Congress said in the letter that as a religious leader with a large following, he could influence voters in the state.Last time, the dera chief was released from the Rohtak jail in January on a parole of 40 days. This was the 15th time he was released on parole/furlough ever since he was awarded the jail term by a special CBI court in August 2017.