Unnao rape case: Delhi HC grants interim bail to ex-BJP leader

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday granted interim bail to expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar to attend the wedding of his daughter.

Kuldeep Singh Sengar is serving life term for raping a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao in 2017.

A bench of Justices Mukta Gupta and Poonam A Bamba suspended the sentence from January 27 to February 10 and asked Sengar to report to the SHO concerned on a daily basis during his release period and furnish two sureties of ₹ 1 lakh each.

Kuldeep Singh Sengar, represented by senior advocates N Hariharan and P K Dubey, informed the court that wedding rituals and ceremonies would be held in Gorakhpur and Lucknow and being the only male family member, he has to make arrangements.

Sengar had earlier informed the court that the wedding would take place on February 8.

Counsel for the CBI said that a status report has been filed by the agency and it was found that two halls have been booked for the wedding ceremonies.

Sengar's appeal challenging the trial court's verdict in the Unnao rape case is already pending in the high court.

He has sought quashing of the December 16, 2019, judgement of the trial court which convicted him. Sengar has also sought setting aside of the December 20, 2019 order sentencing him to imprisonment for the remainder of his life.

The trial court had convicted Sengar under various provisions, including section 376 (2) of the IPC which deals with the offence of rape committed by a public servant who "takes advantage of his official position and commits rape on a woman in his custody as such public servant or in the custody of a public servant subordinate to him".

It had awarded him the maximum punishment of life term with a rider that the convict will remain in jail for the "remainder of his natural biological life" and also imposed an fine of ₹ 25 lakh on him.

The girl was kidnapped and raped by Sengar in 2017 when she was a minor.

The trial, which started on August 5, 2019, after it was transferred from Unnao to Delhi on the Supreme Court's directions, was carried on a day-to-day basis.

The apex court, taking cognisance of the rape survivor's letter written to the then Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, had on August 1, 2019, transferred all five cases registered in connection with the Unnao rape incident from a Lucknow court to the court in Delhi with directions to hold trial on a daily basis and complete it within 45 days.

PTI with minor edits