Hearing a plea filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the high court’s decision, the apex court issued notice to Sengar. Expressing relief over the Supreme Court’s intervention, the Unnao rape survivor on Monday said she would not rest until convict Kuldeep Singh Sengar is hanged, after the top court stayed the Delhi High Court order suspending his life sentence. While hearing a plea by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the high court’s order, the Supreme Court issued notice to Sengar and asked him to file his response.
“I am very happy with this decision. I have got justice from the Supreme Court. I have been raising my voice for justice from the very beginning,” the survivor said. “I do not make any allegations against any court. I have faith in all courts, but the Supreme Court has given me justice and will continue to do so,” she said. She further said, “I will not rest until he is hanged. I will keep fighting. Only then will my family and I get justice. We receive threats even today.” Family members welcomed the Supreme Court’s intervention, saying it had restored their faith in the justice system. The survivor’s sister said she was confident the court would ensure that the accused is not released. Calling him a “monster”, she said he had not only raped her sister but also devastated the entire family, adding that she was satisfied with the latest order and that his bail should continue to be denied. She said the family would keep pursuing the case.
The survivor’s mother thanked the apex court for the relief and said those responsible for her husband’s death deserved the death penalty. Activist Yogita Bhayana said the order carried broader significance beyond a single case, noting that the Supreme Court itself had observed that while stays are not ordinarily granted, the present case stood on a different footing. On Monday, the Supreme Court stayed the Delhi High Court order that had suspended Sengar’s life sentence and granted him bail in the 2017 Unnao rape case. A vacation bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices J K Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih said the matter required consideration and directed that Sengar should not be released from custody, despite the high court’s December 23 order.
The Delhi High Court had, on December 23, suspended Sengar’s sentence, observing that the former Unnao legislator had already spent seven years and five months in prison. The suspension was ordered pending the hearing of his appeal against his December 2019 conviction by the trial court. The expelled BJP leader will continue to remain in jail as he is also serving a 10-year sentence in the custodial death case of the survivor’s father and has not been granted bail in that matter. The rape case and related cases were transferred from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi on the Supreme Court’s directions on August 1, 2019.
