The Delhi High Court has declined the plea of former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar to suspend his sentence during the appeal process. Sengar is serving a 10-year sentence for his involvement in the custodial death of the father of a rape victim from Unnao. He has been in custody since April 13, 2018. In addition to this sentence, Sengar is also serving a life sentence for the rape of a minor.
These cases originate from FIRs filed in 2018 at the Makhi Police Station in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh. The cases were adjudicated by the District and Sessions Judge at Tis Hazari Courts in Delhi. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma of the Delhi High Court dismissed Sengar's plea for sentence suspension, emphasising the severity and nature of his crimes.
The High Court noted that although Sengar has served about six years of his 10-year sentence, the gravity of his offences, his criminal antecedents, and the impact on public confidence must also be considered.
The court stated that the period served by a convict is just one factor in deciding an application for suspension of sentence. Other factors include the nature of the crime and the convict's criminal background.
Sengar's counsel argued that he has been in jail since April 2018, except for a brief period when he was granted interim suspension to attend his daughter's wedding.
His lawyer, Kanhaiya Singhal, highlighted that Sengar has served almost six years of his sentence and that other co-accused who have served more than half of their sentences have been granted suspension of sentence.
The defence also argued that the prosecution's case against Sengar relies solely on circumstantial evidence, specifically a phone call Sengar made to the Superintendent of Police, who was not charged in this case. They contended that call detail records and mobile phone locations disproved the prosecution's case.
However, Special Public Prosecutor Ravi Sharma opposed the plea, asserting that Sengar played a key role in the crime. He emphasized that Sengar’s conviction involves causing the death of a witness in a brutal rape case and that the offense is serious and grave. The prosecutor also noted that Sengar is already convicted of rape in a related case, and the victim in the custodial death case was a witness to this rape.
The case background reveals that on June 4, 2017, the minor daughter of the custodial death victim was lured with the promise of a job and taken to Sengar’s house, where she was raped by Sengar.
On April 3, 2018, the victim's family was travelling to Unnao for a court hearing when her father was brutally assaulted by the accused in broad daylight. The following day, the police arrested the victim’s father on charges of illegal arms possession. He succumbed to multiple injuries in police custody on April 9, 2018.
The Supreme Court had transferred the trials of five related cases from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi on August 1, 2019, to ensure fair proceedings. The apex court also directed that the trial be completed within 45 days and provided protection to the minor rape victim, her family, and their lawyer through the CRPF. This protection remains in place to date.
The Delhi High Court's decision underscores the seriousness of Sengar's offences and the need for justice to prevail in such grave cases. The appeal will be heard on its merits on August 7.
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