New Delhi, Dec 29 A 3-judge Bench of the Supreme Court will on Monday hear the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) plea against the Delhi High Court order that suspended the life sentence and granted bail to expelled Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case.
As per the causelist published on the website of the apex court, a vacation bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, and Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih will take up the matter for hearing on Monday.
The CBI has moved the apex court against the December 23 order of the Delhi High Court allowing Sengar’s application for suspension of sentence during the pendency of his appeal.
It was learnt earlier that the CBI and the victim’s family had indicated their intention to challenge the Delhi High Court’s decision before the Supreme Court.
The family members of the survivor, along with women’s rights activists, have protested against the suspension of Sengar’s sentence, saying the bail order had "shaken public faith" and sent a wrong message on crimes against women.
In the Delhi High Court, the CBI had strongly opposed Sengar’s plea, highlighting the gravity of the offence and the potential risks involved.
In its order, a division bench of Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar had suspended Sengar’s life sentence and granted him conditional bail during the pendency of his appeal, subject to strict conditions.
The Unnao rape case had triggered nationwide outrage. In December 2019, the trial court convicted Sengar of kidnapping and raping a minor girl and sentenced him to imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life, along with a fine of Rs 25 lakh.
The Supreme Court had earlier transferred all cases related to the incident from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi and directed that the trial be conducted on a day-to-day basis.
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