New Delhi: Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Delhi High Court on Friday to condemn the conditional bail granted to former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the high-profile Unnao rape case, triggering nationwide outrage and renewed calls for justice for the survivor.
The demonstration saw activists, women’s rights campaigners and members of the survivor’s family raising slogans against the court’s decision, which suspended Sengar’s life sentence in the 2017 rape case while his appeal is pending.
Speaking to the media, the mother of the survivor lambasted the Delhi High Court’s bail order, saying the decision had shattered her family’s faith in the judicial process and that Sengar “should be hanged immediately.” She reiterated that the bail should be rejected and said the family would approach the Supreme Court to overturn the decision.
The mother also voiced fears for their safety, citing past incidents in which she believes Sengar’s influence had endangered her family. The survivor, now 24 and residing in Delhi, told journalists she felt “extremely unsafe” upon learning about the bail conditions.
Protesters were warned by security personnel to disperse, with officials saying legal action would be taken if they did not leave within five minutes.
Prominent women’s rights activist Yogita Bhayana, present at the protest, asserted that women across India were deeply hurt by what they described as the overturning of a rapist’s sentence. She said demonstrators sought justice “from the same place where the injustice occurred.”
Other protesters questioned the grounds on which Sengar had been granted bail, arguing that his conviction for rape and related violent crimes should preclude his release.
Kuldeep Singh Sengar was convicted in December 2019 by a trial court for the kidnapping and rape of a 17-year-old girl in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh in 2017 and sentenced to life imprisonment.
On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court suspended that life sentence, noting that Sengar had served more than the maximum term under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and granted him bail subject to conditions, including an order that he must stay at least five kilometres away from the survivor.
Despite the bail order, Sengar remains in prison on a separate 10-year sentence in connection with the custodial death of the survivor’s father.
In response to the High Court’s decision, lawyers have filed petitions in the Supreme Court seeking to set aside the bail. They argue the suspension of Sengar’s sentence and the grant of bail ignored key evidence about the brutality of the crimes and the accused’s history of intimidation.
The case continues to draw intense public scrutiny, with critics saying the bail decision undermines victim confidence in the justice system while supporters note that legal appeals and safeguards remain active.
