The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted interim bail for two weeks to Unnao rape case convict and expelled Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar to undergo treatment for retinal detachment, reported Bar and Bench.
In December 2019, Sengar was convicted and sentenced to life for raping a woman in 2017. She was a minor when assaulted.
In March 2020, Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his brother Jaideep Singh Sengar, among others, were sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment for the killing of the woman’s father in judicial custody.
On Thursday, Justice Pratibha M Singh ordered that Sengar be admitted to the All India Institute Of Medical Sciences in Delhi for an initial assessment to determine if his condition can be treated locally, according to Bar and Bench.
“If he is to be released from hospital then Sengar is to reside in a known location and would not contact the survivor,” said Singh. “Local CBI [Central Bureau of Investigation] to be in touch with AIIMS to monitor his movement. Sengar to remain in touch with IO [investigating officer] daily.”
Representing Sengar, advocate Narayanan Hariharan argued that the former BJP leader’s critical medical condition required immediate attention, including surgery. He also told the court that Sengar had other health issues and wished to undergo treatment in Chennai.
Advocate Mehmood Pracha, appearing for the complainant, opposed the bail, arguing that Sengar could receive adequate medical treatment in jail. Pracha raised concerns about the accuracy of his medical reports.
He told the court that Sengar posed a potential threat to the survivor and her family, who are under Central Reserve Police Force protection.
The woman and her family had been provided security cover after an order of the Supreme Court in July 2019. The court had noted at the time that there was a threat to the lives of the survivor, her mother and her lawyer, among other persons.
This came after the woman and her lawyer were severely injured in a car crash. Her family had alleged that Sengar was behind the accident. Two of the woman’s relatives, one of whom was a witness in the rape case, were killed in the accident.
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