Unnao rape case: Plea filed in SC against suspension of Sengar's jail term
New Delhi (PTI): A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging a Delhi High Court order suspending the jail term of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case.
The petition filed by advocates Anjale Patel and Pooja Shilpkar has sought a stay on the high court order.
They contended that the HC passed the order without considering that the trial court observed that Sengar must remain in jail for the rest of his natural life.
The HC has committed a grave error in law as well as on facts in granting bail/suspension of sentence to Sengar despite his serious criminal antecedents and his established involvement in the heinous offences of rape, they said.
"The High Court failed to appreciate the material evidence relied upon by the prosecution which clearly demonstrates the barbarity and brutality of the accused, coupled with his demonstrated muscle power, financial influence and criminal propensity, as evidenced from the fact that even while the victim's father was under judicial custody, the accused orchestrated and executed victim's father murder to silence the family and frustrate the due course of justice," the plea said.
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On December 23, the HC suspended the jail term of Sengar, who is serving life imprisonment in the Unnao rape case, saying he has already served seven years and five months in prison.
Sengar's sentence has been suspended by the high court till the pendency of his appeal challenging his conviction and sentence in the rape case. He has challenged a December 2019 trial court verdict in the case.
He will, however, remain in jail since he is also serving 10 years' imprisonment in the custodial death case of the victim's father and has not been granted bail in that case.
Imposing several conditions, the HC directed Sengar, who kidnapped and raped the survivor when she was a minor, to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15 lakh with three sureties of the like amount.
It also directed him not to come within a 5-km radius of the survivor's residence in Delhi and not to threaten her or her mother. Violation of any of the conditions would lead to the cancellation of bail, the HC said.
The rape case and other connected cases were transferred to Delhi from a trial court in Uttar Pradesh on the directions of the Supreme Court on August 1, 2019.
Sengar's appeal against his conviction in the case of the custodial death of the survivor's father is also pending, where he has sought suspension of sentence on the ground that he has already spent a substantial time in jail.
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All must join hands to maintain law and order: BNP’s Tarique Rahman after return to Bangladesh
Dhaka (PTI): Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) acting chairman Tarique Rahman on Thursday called on countrymen to join hands to maintain law and order, in his first address to party supporters hours after his arrival in Dhaka after a gap of 17 years.
“Whatever political party we belong to, whatever religion we believe in, whether we are non-partisan individuals -- all must join hands to maintain law and order,” he told thousands of party supporters gathered at the July 36 Expressway in the capital, where he went straight after arriving at the airport.
Rahman's call for maintaining law and order came amid a fresh wave of unrest and political instability gripping Bangladesh following the killing of prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi, who was a prominent face in last year's mass protests that forced the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina government.
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Rahman, the 60-year-old son of ailing former prime minister Khaleda Zia, has emerged as a leading contender for prime ministership in the polls.
Referring to a popular quote from US civil rights activist Martin Luther King “I Have a dream”, Rahman said, “I have a plan for the people of my country and for my country,” state-owned Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reported.
“This plan is for the interest of the people, for the development of the country, for changing the lot of the country. To implement the plan, I need the support of all the people of the country. If you stand beside us, God willing, we will be able to implement my plan,” Rahman added.
He said he wants to make a safe Bangladesh where people irrespective of castes, creeds and faiths, can live in a peaceful environment, the report said.
“We have people from the hills and the plains in this country – Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. We want to build a safe Bangladesh, where every woman, man and child can leave home safely and return safely,” he said.
Rahman’s call for unity came as Jamaat-e-Islami, the BNP's coalition partner during its 2001-2006 tenure in power, has emerged as its main rival in the upcoming polls after the interim government blocked Awami League's participation under the country's tough Anti-Terrorism Act.
Referring to the 1971 liberation war, Rahman said, “Our loving motherland was achieved through the blood of lakhs of martyrs in the 1971 Liberation War,” he said.
He also recalled the Sepoy-People's Revolution of November 7, 1975, the 1990 anti-autocracy movement, and the uprising of August 5, 2024, as struggles to protect the country’s freedom and sovereignty, the report said.
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"In 2024, the students and masses all walks of life protected the independence and sovereignty of this country on that day," he said.
He said the people of Bangladesh now want to regain their democratic rights and right to speak.
Rahman also urged people to pray for her ailing mother and BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, whom he was going to meet at the Evercare hospital in Dhaka after leaving the venue.
Zia, a three-time prime minister, has been undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit (ICU) at the hospital.
BNP emerged as the forerunner to capture power in the February polls, as former prime minister Hasina's Awami League party has been barred from contesting the election.
