In India, a video of a contentious religious guru who is currently serving lengthy prison terms for rape and murder went viral last week.
It featured Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the sect's leader, cutting a cake with Honeypreet Insan, the young woman he refers to as his adopted daughter, while on parole from prison. The event was held to mark the million-follower milestone for her Instagram account.
A different video that showed the guru slicing another, much larger cake with a sword went viral a few days earlier.
Indian media outlets covered the videos, prompting questions about Singh's "frequent parole" from critics.
Since being found guilty of raping two of his followers in August 2017 and sentenced to 20 years in prison, Singh has been detained at Sunaria jail in the northern state of Haryana. He was given a life sentence for the murder of a journalist in 2019 and another life sentence for the murder of one of his employees in 2002 in 2021.
Singh was given a 21-day furlough in February 2022, a 30-day parole in June, and a 40-day parole in October, but despite being found guilty of such grave crimes, he has been out of jail for a total of 131 days over the past 13 months. He was then released for an additional 40 days on January 21.
"Parole is a right of all prisoners, it's a human right," a representative of Singh's Dera Sacha Sauda told the BBC.
The official claimed that every day 100,000 people were giving up drugs as a result of him and that he spent his time engaging in spiritual discourse and working diligently to address people's problems.
On social media, however, Singh's release has been met with shock. People are baffled as to how a man convicted of crimes like rape and murder was allowed to leave jail.
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the highest religious body in Sikhism, has petitioned the court to revoke his parole on the grounds that "it sends the wrong message to society.".
Gurcharan Singh Grewal, the general secretary of the SGPC, told the BBC that Singh was "a disgrace" and that his presence outside of prison was "bad for society.".
Singh was one of India's most important religious figures prior to his conviction in 2017. Having tens of millions of followers, his expansive headquarters in the Haryana town of Sirsa, where he was based, received hundreds of thousands of pilgrims each year.
Singh was dubbed the "guru of bling" for his love of outrageous clothing and jewelry. He was also known as "rockstar baba" because he performed rock concerts, mingled with India's powerful, and acted in films he produced.
He was courted by India's two largest political parties, the Congress and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), for years because he could sway election results by urging his supporters to support one party over the other.
He has recently aligned himself with the BJP. He urged his supporters to support the party ahead of the Haryana state assembly elections in 2014, and the party went on to win the election.
He was pictured with Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on several occasions prior to his fall from grace.
Singh's influence appears to have persisted despite his convictions and lengthy prison terms.
According to reports, he has been holding virtual gatherings with tens of thousands of followers from his ashram in Barnawa, in the Baghpat district of the state of Uttar Pradesh, where he is staying while on parole.
Opposition parties started charging the BJP with involvement in his parole after several BJP politicians were spotted there.
Sanjay Sharma, the party's chief spokesman in Haryana, refuted any involvement by the BJP or its administration in Singh's parole.
"People who visit him or attend his lectures do so because they believe in him. Mr. Sharma told the BBC, "We don't have a soft spot for him; we let the law take its own course.
On top of that, he added, "it's the jail authorities or the district administration that approve parole" and "it's all being done within the scope of the law.".
Divisional Commissioner Sanjeev Verma, who oversees administration for the Rohtak district and oversees the jail where Singh is being held, declined to respond to questions from the BBC regarding Singh's parole, claiming that the matter was still under consideration by the court and therefore sub judice.
Mohammad Akil, the director general of prisons, also declined to comment, but he did add that two prior petitions of a similar nature challenging Singh's parole had been dismissed by the courts.
Akshat Bajpai, an attorney for the Supreme Court, claims that obtaining parole is extremely difficult and that it is difficult to comprehend how Singh is able to do so repeatedly.
"Extraordinary measures," such as parole and furlough, are "meant to cater to specific needs of prisoners, such as a death in the family or the marriage of children or siblings, but they are not meant to subvert judicial orders.".
Singh is a convicted prisoner who has been adjudged guilty by a court of such heinous crimes as rape and murder. He is not a defendant awaiting trial. However, he is absent every three to four months.
Additionally, he conducts himself in a shockingly brazen manner. He is seen cutting a cake with a sword, which is against the Arms Act. He also creates and releases music videos and mocks the criminal justice system.