The Delhi High Court has granted bail to former BJP legislator Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case, suspending his life sentence while his appeal remains pending. The court imposed strict conditions on his release, including restrictions on his movement and regular police reporting, warning that any breach would lead to cancellation of bail.
A division bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad and Justice Harish Vaidynathan Shankar ordered the suspension of Sengar’s jail term during the pendency of his appeal. Sengar, who has been serving life imprisonment following his conviction in the high-profile case, was directed not to enter within a five-kilometre radius of the victim’s residence and not to threaten or contact the survivor or her mother in any manner.
As part of the bail conditions, the court asked Sengar to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15 lakh along with three sureties of the same amount. He has also been ordered to surrender his passport and mark his presence at the local police station every Monday. The bench made it clear that violation of any of these conditions would result in immediate cancellation of bail.
The suspension of sentence will continue until the High Court decides Sengar’s appeal. The former MLA had sought suspension of his sentence on the ground that he has already spent a substantial period in custody.
The Unnao rape case dates back to 2017, when Sengar was accused of raping a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district. The case triggered nationwide outrage after the survivor attempted suicide outside the Chief Minister’s residence, alleging inaction by authorities. Public anger intensified following reports that the victim’s father died in police custody and that the survivor was later injured in a suspicious car accident.
Given the sensitivity of the matter and concerns over a fair trial, the Supreme Court, on August 1, 2019, transferred the rape case and related proceedings from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi. A Delhi trial court later convicted Sengar of rape and sentenced him to life imprisonment, also imposing a fine of Rs 25 lakh. He was further held guilty of orchestrating the custodial death of the survivor’s father.
Sengar’s appeal challenging his conviction and sentence in the rape case is currently pending before the Delhi High Court. His appeal in the case relating to the custodial death of the survivor’s father is also yet to be decided.
