New Delhi, Jan 19 (IANS) The Delhi High Court on Monday rejected a plea filed by expelled Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar seeking suspension of his 10-year sentence in the custodial death case of the Unnao rape survivor’s father.

A single-judge Bench of Justice Ravinder Dudeja dismissed Sengar’s second application for suspension of sentence and grant of bail, citing the gravity of the offence, his criminal antecedents and the absence of any new subsequent development.

In its order, Justice Dudeja said that while the Delhi High Court was mindful that Sengar has undergone nearly 7.5 years of incarceration out of the total 10-year sentence, the delay in hearing his appeal was partly due to his own repeated applications, including pleas to suspend the sentence.

The single-judge Bench observed that the appeal would have to be decided on merits and directed that the same be heard expeditiously.

Sengar was convicted by a Delhi court in March 2020 for conspiring in the custodial death of the rape survivor’s father and was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment.

The trial in the case, along with other cases linked to the Unnao incident, was transferred from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi by the Supreme Court in August 2019, with a direction that the proceedings be conducted on a day-to-day basis.

The case relates to an incident in April 2018 when the father of the minor rape victim was allegedly assaulted by Sengar’s associates in Unnao. He was arrested the following day on charges of illegal possession of arms and later died in police custody due to multiple injuries.

Earlier, in June 2024 the Delhi High Court had rejected a similar plea filed by Sengar, holding that considering the gravity of the offence, the nature of the crime, his criminal antecedents and the impact on public confidence in the justice delivery system, he was not entitled to suspension of sentence.

In December 2019, Sengar was convicted in the rape case involving a minor girl and sentenced to imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life.

Recently, the Delhi High Court had suspended the life sentence in the 2017 Unnao rape case and granted him bail pending appeal.

Though it imposed stringent conditions, the decision triggered widespread criticism and protests. Subsequently, the Supreme Court stayed the operation of the Delhi High Court order, citing the “peculiar facts” of the case and clarifying that Sengar would not be released from custody.

–IANS

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