CBI to approach SC challenging suspension of Unnao rape convict Kuldeep Sengar’s life term

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will move the Supreme Court to challenge the Delhi High Court’s decision to suspend the life sentence and grant bail to former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case, officials said Wednesday. The agency decided to act after reviewing the High Court order, a CBI spokesperson confirmed. 

According to the spokesperson, the CBI will file a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court as soon as possible against the order that paused Sengar’s sentence and allowed bail. Despite this relief, Sengar will remain in custody because he is also serving a 10-year sentence in the case related to the custodial death of the survivor’s father.

Sengar had appealed his life sentence, a move strongly opposed by both the CBI and the survivor’s family before the High Court, reported PTI. “The CBI submitted replies and written arguments in time. The family also objected, citing safety concerns and threats. The CBI will challenge this order immediately,” the agency said.

On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court suspended Sengar’s sentence, noting that he has already spent over seven years and five months in jail. The survivor and her mother protested the decision, but were removed by Delhi Police, sparking political controversy. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi criticised the police action and questioned the broader message being sent, saying the decision to grant bail was “disappointing and shameful,” especially when the survivor still faces fear and harassment.

He added that dissent is a democratic right and suppressing it is wrong. The High Court suspended Sengar’s sentence pending the outcome of his appeal against his conviction and punishment, originally imposed by a trial court in December 2019.

Granting bail with conditions, Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar directed Sengar to submit a ₹15-lakh personal bond with three sureties of the same amount. He has also been barred from coming within five kilometers of the survivor’s Delhi residence and from intimidating her or her mother.

Rahul Gandhi later met the survivor and her mother at Sonia Gandhi’s residence, where they requested help securing a top lawyer to fight the case in the Supreme Court. Gandhi promised assistance and said the survivor deserves respect and justice, not fear or harassment.

Sengar was convicted of kidnapping and raping the girl in 2017, when she was a minor. In 2019, the Supreme Court transferred the rape and related cases from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi.