Unnao rape case
NEW DELHI/UNNAO, Dec 23: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday suspended the jail term of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who is serving life imprisonment in the 2017 Unnao rape case, while imposing several conditions.
A bench of Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar directed Sengar to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15 lakh with three sureties of the like amount.
The high court also directed him not to come within a 5-km radius of the victim’s residence in Delhi and not to threaten her or her mother. “Violation of any of the conditions would lead to cancellation of bail,” the court said.
Sengar’s sentence has been suspended by the high court till the pendency of his appeal challenging his conviction and sentence in the rape case. He has challenged a December 2019 trial court verdict in the rape case.
While pronouncing the verdict, the bench said the three sureties must be the residents of Delhi and also directed Sengar to stay in the national capital during the pendency of his appeal. He should remain available to complete the remaining part of the sentence if found guilty.
Sengar was also directed to deposit his passport with the trial court and to report to the local police station every Monday at 10 am.
Talking to PTI, the Unnao rape case survivor said she was not satisfied with the verdict.
“I have small children. There is an elderly, differently-abled mother-in-law and my husband at home. The safety of my children is of the biggest concern,” she said.
The survivor claimed that during the course of the trial, her family was repeatedly “forced” to make rounds of the court. “My uncle’s bail plea was rejected,” she said, while questioning why security cover provided to her family members, legal aides and witnesses was withdrawn.
“Usually, verdict is pronounced within 2 or 3 days after the conclusion of arguments. But in this case, the decision came after three months. Even before the verdict, security for the family and witnesses was withdrawn,” she alleged.
“In the serious crime where my father was murdered and I was subjected to rape, the accused is granted bail after serving a few years in prison. This raises the question of what kind of justice this is,” she added. (PTI)
