New Delhi, March 11 – The Delhi High Court on Wednesday deferred the hearing on a plea filed by the Unnao rape survivor seeking to enhance the sentence awarded to expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar and other convicted individuals in the custodial death case of her father.
A division bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja granted additional time to the convicts to file their responses and scheduled the matter for further hearing on March 28.
Earlier, in February, the Delhi High Court had issued a notice on the plea filed by the survivor, who challenged the sentence awarded to Sengar and sought to increase the 10-year rigorous imprisonment imposed on him by a Delhi court.
The survivor has argued that, considering the severity and seriousness of the crime, the convicts should be given the death penalty.
Sengar was convicted in March 2020 for conspiring in the custodial death of the survivor's father and was given a 10-year sentence by a Delhi court.
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 after sustaining multiple injuries.
The trial, along with other cases arising out of the Unnao rape incident, had been transferred from Uttar Pradesh to Delhi by the Supreme Court to ensure a fair and expeditious trial.
Earlier in January, the Delhi High Court had rejected Sengar's second application seeking suspension of sentence and granting of bail, citing the severity of the crime, his criminal history, and the absence of any new developments.
The Supreme Court had also declined to suspend Sengar's sentence, while noting that his criminal appeal against conviction was already pending before the Delhi High Court.
In an order passed on January 9, a bench headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) had requested the Delhi High Court to endeavour to decide Sengar's appeal as expeditiously as possible, preferably within three months.
The apex court had observed that if the survivor's appeal challenging the sentence is found to be maintainable, it would be in the interest of justice for all connected appeals to be heard together and decided expeditiously.
Sengar is also serving a life sentence following his conviction in December 2019 in the rape case involving the minor girl.