New Delhi : After former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar was granted bail in the 2017 Unnao rape case, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi strongly criticised the decision, calling it "disappointing and shameful" and questioning the manner in which the survivor continues to be treated by the system.
He further claimed that India is not just becoming a dead economy but, with such inhuman incidents, also turning into a dead society. In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi wrote, "Is such treatment of a gang rape survivor appropriate? Is her 'fault' that she has the courage to raise her voice for justice? The fact that her perpetrator (former BJP MLA) has been granted bail is extremely disappointing and shameful especially when the survivor is being repeatedly harassed, and is living under the shadow of fear."
"Bail for rapists, and treating survivors like criminals--what kind of justice is this?" Gandhi said, warning that such actions erode public faith in the justice system.
The senior Congress leader further remarked that incidents like these signal not only institutional failure but a deeper moral decline.
"We are not just becoming a dead economy--with such inhuman incidents, we are also turning into a dead society. In a democracy, raising a voice of dissent is a right, and suppressing it is a crime. The survivor deserves respect, safety, and justice--not helplessness, fear, and injustice," the post on X read.
The survivor's mother alleged that while she and her two daughters were being transported in a CRPF vehicle, she was abruptly dropped off on the side of the road, and security guards took her daughters away.
"We did not get justice... They are taking my daughter away as a captive... These security personnel want to kill us all. They took my daughters away in a CRPF vehicle... Kuldeep Sengar's bail should be cancelled; otherwise, we will give up our lives... Otherwise, we will be killed, we are not safe," she further alleged.
A day earlier, the Delhi High Court granted bail (suspension of sentence) to former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the Unnao rape case. He was convicted by a Delhi CBI court in a minor's rape case and was serving a life sentence.
Division bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar suspended the sentence during the pendency of his appeal. He has been granted relief on the condition that he furnish a bail bond of Rs 15 lakh.
However, he will remain in custody as he has not yet been granted bail in the victim's father's custodial death matter. An appeal and application for suspension of sentence is pending before the High Court of Delhi. He was awarded a 10-year sentence in that case.
While granting bail, the High Court has directed that Sengar will not go into the 5-kilometre area where the victim resides in Delhi. It is also directed that Sengar Shall remain in Delhi. He shall not contact the victim's family members.
Senior advocate N Hariharan, along with Advocate SP M Tripathi, appeared for Kuldeep Singh Sengar. It was submitted that Kuldeep Singh Sengar is not a public servant. It was also submitted that the age of the victims is in dispute, as it is different in different documents. In this situation, the medical report on her age should be considered.