Kuldeep Sengar Bail: Unnao Rape Survivor Meets Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi; Reposes Faith In Supreme Court For Justice

The survivor, who was a minor at the time of the crime in June 2017, met Gandhi a few hours after the Congress leader criticised the alleged manhandling of her by security personnel at Delhi’s India Gate, where she was protesting against Sengar’s bail. 

Unnao Rape Case Bail Row: The survivor in the Unnao rape case met Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday, stating that she now looks to the Supreme Court for justice after the Delhi High Court granted bail to the convicted accused and suspended the sentence imposed by a lower court. The meeting came a day after the High Court put on hold the life imprisonment sentence of former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the case.

The survivor, who was a minor at the time of the crime in June 2017, met Gandhi a few hours after the Congress leader criticised the alleged manhandling of her by security personnel at Delhi’s India Gate, where she was protesting against Sengar’s bail. Speaking to reporters, she said she also wishes to meet President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to seek justice.

"Such an order is the first of its kind in the nation that in the rape case, the sentence was stayed, and bail was granted. All the daughters of the country are now afraid that they will be raped, and the criminals will get away with it... They have confined us to our homes by giving him the order to stay 5km away from us... I have faith in the Supreme Court that it will give us justice..." said the victim.

After meeting Sonia Gandhi, she said, "They assured us that they would help us get justice. This is the first time in the country that a rape accused is going to be released on bail. I want time to meet the Prime Minister and the President. Rahul Gandhi has given us a lot of strength and assured us that we will get justice... This order has weakened the daughters of the country..."

Taking to X, Rahul Gandhi said, "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? 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 Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted bail to former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the Unnao rape case. A Delhi CBI court convicted him in a minor's rape case, and he was serving a life sentence. His appeal against the judgment is pending before the Delhi High Court. 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 sentenced to 10 years in jail in that case.