New Delhi [India], December 29 (ANI): Congress leader T.S. Singh Deo on Monday said he was astonished by what he described as the weakness shown by the judiciary, following the Supreme Court’s decision to stay the Delhi High Court order that had suspended the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the Unnao rape case.
Singh Deo said it would have been deeply disappointing if the Supreme Court had not intervened to stay the High Court’s order. He remarked that nothing was more shameful than a judicial system granting relief to a convict in such a serious case, adding that the Supreme Court’s stay was necessary under the circumstances.
Reacting to the development, National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) president Varun Choudhary said he would welcome the decision more fully when Sengar is ultimately convicted and justice is delivered. He said the case represents a larger fight for justice for women in the country.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court stayed the Delhi High Court’s order suspending Sengar’s life sentence in the 2017 Unnao rape case involving a minor. The three-judge vacation bench, led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and comprising Justices J.K. Maheshwari and A.G. Masih, was hearing a plea filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation challenging the High Court’s December 23 decision, which had granted Sengar bail pending appeal.
While staying the High Court order, the apex court noted that Sengar continues to remain in custody in another criminal case. The bench observed that the convict has also been sentenced under Section 304 of the Indian Penal Code in a separate murder case and is still in jail in that matter. Considering these circumstances, the court directed that the High Court’s order would remain in abeyance and that Sengar shall not be released.
The Supreme Court also issued notice to Sengar, seeking his response to the CBI’s plea within two weeks.
Sengar, a former Uttar Pradesh MLA, was convicted in December 2019 in the Unnao rape case and sentenced to life imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 25 lakh.
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