National News
Unnao rape case: SC to hear CBI plea against suspension of Kuldeep Sengar’s sentence on Monday
The Supreme Court will on Monday hear the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) petition challenging the Delhi High Court’s order suspending the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar and granting him bail in the 2017 Unnao rape case during the pendency of his appeal.
The Supreme Court will on Monday hear the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) petition challenging the Delhi High Court’s order suspending the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar and granting him bail in the 2017 Unnao rape case during the pendency of his appeal.
As per the Supreme Court’s cause list for December 29, the matter will be taken up by a three-judge Special Vacation Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice A.G. Masih.
The CBI has urged the apex court to stay the December 23 order of the Delhi High Court, which has triggered widespread outrage. The top court will also hear a separate petition filed by advocates Anjale Patel and Pooja Shilpkar, who have challenged the suspension of Sengar’s sentence and the grant of bail. They argued that the high court ignored the trial court’s observation that Sengar should remain in prison for the rest of his natural life.
The survivor has also criticised the high court order, alleging collusion between Sengar and the then investigating officer, and has demanded registration of an FIR in the matter.
The Delhi High Court had suspended Sengar’s sentence on the ground that aggravated offence provisions under Section 5(c) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 376(2) of the IPC were not applicable, as he could not be categorised as a “public servant” under the relevant provisions. The court also noted that Sengar had already spent seven years and five months in jail.
Sengar, however, will remain behind bars as he is serving a 10-year sentence in the custodial death case of the survivor’s father and has not been granted bail in that matter.
While granting bail in the rape case, the high court directed Sengar to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15 lakh with three sureties. It also imposed strict conditions, including a bar on entering a 5-km radius of the survivor’s residence in Delhi and any attempt to threaten or influence her or her mother. Any violation, the court said, would result in cancellation of bail.
The petitioners contended that the high court committed a grave error by overlooking Sengar’s serious criminal antecedents and the brutality of the crime. They pointed out that despite the survivor’s father being in judicial custody, Sengar allegedly orchestrated his murder to intimidate the family and derail the course of justice.
The Unnao rape case and related matters were transferred from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi on the Supreme Court’s orders in August 2019. Appeals filed by Sengar in both the rape case and the custodial death case are currently pending before the high court.
