The Supreme Court of India on Monday intervened to halt the potential release of former BJP legislator Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a convict in the horrific 2017 Unnao rape case. The court's decision came swiftly after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenged a Delhi High Court order that had temporarily suspended his life sentence.
Daughter's Emotional Plea Amid Legal Turmoil
Following the apex court's order, Ishita Sengar, the daughter of the disgraced former MLA, released a poignant open letter expressing her family's anguish. She described feeling "exhausted, frightened, and slowly losing faith" after an eight-year legal battle. In her letter addressed to the authorities of India, Ishita stated that her family chose silence and trust in institutions over public spectacle, believing that truth needed no grand display.
"People call us 'powerful.' I ask you what kind of power leaves a family voiceless for eight years?" she wrote, countering the perception linked to her father's past political identity. She detailed the severe toll the case has taken, claiming the family has been "drained financially, emotionally, and physically." Ishita also alleged facing relentless rape and death threats on social media, which she said eventually forced her into silence.
Supreme Court Cites 'Peculiar Facts' in Staying Release
A special three-judge vacation bench, led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and including Justices JK Maheshwari and AG Masih, heard the CBI's urgent plea. The bench acknowledged that it does not ordinarily stay orders releasing a convict. However, it made an exception due to the "peculiar facts" of this case, noting that Sengar remains incarcerated in a separate criminal matter.
"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. But in view of the peculiar facts where the convict is convicted for a separate offence, we stay the operation of the Delhi High Court order," the bench stated. The court has issued a formal notice to Kuldeep Sengar and expects his response within four weeks, scheduling the next hearing for the final week of January.
A Case of Horrific Crime and Legal Scrutiny
Kuldeep Singh Sengar, an expelled BJP MLA from Unnao, was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 2019 for the rape of a minor girl. His conviction was under sections of the Indian Penal Code and the stringent Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He is concurrently serving an additional 10-year sentence in a connected CBI case concerning the custodial death of the rape survivor's father.
During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, emphasized the horrific nature of the child rape. He argued that Sengar, being an MLA at the time, held a dominant position over the victim, a factor that warrants stricter punishment under POCSO laws. The bench also raised a significant concern regarding potential legal immunity for lawmakers if they were excluded from the definition of a "public servant" under the POCSO Act.
In a contrasting reaction, the mother of the rape survivor welcomed the Supreme Court's order, stating it renewed her hope for ultimate justice for her daughter. Meanwhile, Ishita Sengar concluded her letter by clarifying that she was not seeking sympathy or special treatment, but simply a fair judicial process. "We are not asking for a favour. We are asking for justice because we are human," she wrote, urging that the law be allowed to function without fear or external pressure.
