New Delhi: Former BJP legislator Kuldeep Singh Sengar has moved the Supreme Court seeking bail in connection with the custodial death of the father of the Unnao rape survivor. The apex court is expected to take up the plea for consideration on Monday.
Sengar, who is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence in the case, had earlier faced a setback when the Delhi High Court declined to pause his sentence on January 19. The High Court observed that the delay in concluding the trial could not be cited as a ground for relief, noting that the accused himself had contributed to the prolonged proceedings by filing multiple applications.
In March 2020, a trial court awarded Sengar rigorous imprisonment for a decade along with a fine of ₹10 lakh for the custodial death. While the court stopped short of convicting him for murder, it held him guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, concluding that there was no proven intent to kill. Nevertheless, it imposed the maximum punishment permitted under the law, underlining that the victim was the family’s only earning member and that the offence warranted strict punishment.
Sengar’s legal battles continue on multiple fronts. His appeals against both the conviction in the custodial death case and the December 2019 verdict in the Unnao rape case—where he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life—are still pending before the High Court.
Although the High Court had suspended his sentence in the rape case on December 23 during the pendency of the appeal, the Supreme Court intervened days later. On December 29, the apex court stayed the suspension, effectively keeping Sengar behind bars.
The Supreme Court’s upcoming hearing will determine whether Sengar is granted interim relief in the custodial death case, a development being closely watched given the gravity and public sensitivity surrounding the Unnao cases.
