Unnao Rape Case: The Supreme Court of India on Monday stayed the Delhi High Court’s order suspending the sentence of Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a former BJP MLA and a convicted rapist. Kuldeep was convicted of raping a woman in 2017, then a minor, in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao.
The High Court on December 23 suspended the life imprisonment of former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case, granting him conditional bail till his appeal is decided. The court noted that Sengar has already served seven years and five months in prison. However, Sengar will remain behind bars as he is also serving a 10-year sentence in the separate case of the custodial death of the survivor’s father and has not been granted bail in that matter.
The three-judge Vacation bench featuring the Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices JK Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih heard the Unnao rape case. The bench, while hearing the petition filed by the CBI, said that Sengar should not be released from jail.
What Did CBI, SC Bench Say During Unnao Rape Case Hearing
"We are conscious of the fact that when a convict or an undertrial has been released, such orders are not ordinarily stayed by this court without hearing such persons. But in view of peculiar facts, where the convict is also convicted for a separate offence, we stay the operation of the Delhi High Court," the top court said.
Issuing notice to Sengar, the top court directed him to file a counter-affidavit within four weeks.
‘We Are Answerable To The Girl’: CBI
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the CBI and called the case ‘very horrific’. "We are answerable to the girl," he said.
Mehta, representing the CBI, opposed the HC’s verdict, which suspended his life sentences, saying that he had already served the maximum punishment of 7 years' imprisonment under the law.
Mehta maintained that after the amendment to the provisions of rape, the minimum punishment for the offence committed by Sengar is 20 years.
To which the top court replied, saying that the amendment to the provision came into effect only after the commission of the crime in the present case. "The amendment was not there during the commission of the offence," the bench said.
SC Calls Out Attempts To Take Political Advantage Of Case
CJI Kant observed that the court was not sitting in ‘ivory tower’ and is aware of attempts being made to take ‘political advantage’ of the situation. The bench also called out the social media trials of HC judges as Sengar’s lawyer said that photographs of Delhi High Court judges were being circulated with captions urging people to "identify these judges"
‘Judges Are Prone To Errors’: SC
Stating that judicial scrutiny is part of the system, the bench said that even the ‘finest judges are prone to errors’.
"You are forgetting that he was convicted by the judiciary only. Don't try to browbeat the judiciary,” the Chief Justice said, after the survivor's lawyer said that Sengar was making hue and cry. "Arguments must be made inside the court, not outside," the bench added.