Former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sangar was defeated again in the Supreme Court. The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to stay her life sentence in the Unnao rape case. The case has been remanded to Delhi High Court for fresh hearing.
In December last year, the Delhi High Court had conditionally suspended Kuldeep’s life sentence in the rape case. After this order was made public, there was a reaction across the country. CBI appealed to the Supreme Court against the order of the High Court.
The Supreme Court stayed the order of the High Court. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Jayamalya Bagchi said the hearing of Sengar’s conviction must be completed within three months or the High Court will issue a fresh order suspending the sentence.
In this case, the CBI said that an MLA means an influential person in the society. Abuse of power is a heinous crime. Sanger’s attorney, meanwhile, argued that according to incident reports, the female victim was not a minor at the time of the incident. However, CBI rejected that claim.
In this case, the High Court held that the MLA cannot be considered as a public servant. Therefore, it is not possible to issue strict provisions against him. However, the Supreme Court did not support the argument of the High Court.
In 2019, a special CBI court sentenced Kuldeep to life imprisonment for raping a minor girl in Unnao. The case created a nationwide stir with allegations of pressure and harassment against the victim’s family.
The CBI is investigating several allegations related to the case on the orders of the Supreme Court. In a separate case related to the death of the victim’s father, Kuldeep was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2020. Earlier this year, Kuldeep’s plea to stay the sentence in that case was also rejected.
