Unnao rape case: Ex-BJP MLA gets bail for daughter's wedding
Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar—convicted of raping a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao district in 2017—was granted interim bail by the Delhi High Court on Monday in order to allow him to attend his daughter's wedding. This came in response to his December 2022 plea requesting interim bail for two months for his daughter's wedding on February 8, 2023.
Why does this story matter?
The case came into the limelight in April 2018 when the rape survivor set herself ablaze near CM Yogi Adityanath's residence. She alleged the police weren't taking action against Sengar and her family was being threatened. Her father later died in police custody after reportedly being beaten by Sengar's brother Atul Singh and accomplices. Sengar was also convicted in connection to her father's killing.
Sengar asked to furnish two sureties of Rs. 1 lakh
According to Live Law, the interim bail was granted to Sengar for a period of 15 days, from January 27 to February 10, by the Delhi High Court's division bench of Justices Mukta Gupta and Poonam A Bamba. The court asked him to provide two sureties of Rs. 1 lakh each and to report every day to the concerned police station during the period.
Arguments by Sengar's counsels in HC
Representing Sengar, senior advocates N Hariharan and PK Dubey claimed in the HC that he has to make arrangements for his daughter's wedding as he was the only man in the family, adding wedding rituals and ceremonies would take place in Gorakhpur and Lucknow. Notably, Sengar's appeal contesting the trial court's decision in the Unnao rape case is still pending in the high court.
What do we know about the case?
Sengar, his brother, and their accomplices were accused of gang rape by the survivor in 2017. He was convicted by the trial court and expelled from the BJP in 2019. The case received nationwide attention after the survivor attempted self-immolation in 2019, alleging police inaction. The CBI started investigating the case, and in July 2019, she met with an accident, which Sengar allegedly orchestrated.
Sengar charged under IPC Section 376, POSCO Act
The trial court found Sengar guilty of rape under IPC Section 376 (rape) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. A fine of Rs. 25 lakh was also imposed on him, out of which Rs. 10 lakh was for the victim and Rs. 15 lakh was for the UP government to compensate the costs incurred during his prosecution.
