SC orders ex-lawmaker Sengar to stay in jail in Unnao rape case

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the Delhi High Court’s order that had suspended the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case, ensuring he remains in jail. A vacation bench led by Justice Surya Kant, Justices JK Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih issued notice to Sengar seeking his response on the CBI’s plea challenging the high court order. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, urged the bench to stay the high court order.The bench said it would examine the matter as it required consideration.  Mehta also opposed the high court declaring that Sengar, an MLA when the offence was committed, was not a public servant to be prosecuted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Chief Justice Surya Kant said the court was not sitting in "ivory towers" and was aware that attempts were being made to take "political advantage" of the situation. The bench also said that even "the finest judges are prone to errors" and judicial scrutiny is part of the system. The Apex Court said, Sengar shall not be released from custody following the High Court’s 23rd December order. Substantial questions of law arise for consideration in the matter, the bench said and posted the matter for hearing after four weeks.

Earlier, the High Court had suspended the jail term of Sengar, who was serving life imprisonment in the Unao rape case, saying he had already served seven years and five months in prison. However, Sengar will continue to remain incarcerated as he is also serving a 10-year sentence in the custodial death case of the victim’s father. "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.