Unnao Rape Case: Supreme Court to Hear CBI Appeal on Kuldeep Sengar Sentence Suspension on Dec 29

India

oi-Gaurav Sharma

The
Unnao
rape
case,
once
a
headline
and
now
a
symbol
of
India’s
struggle
for
justice,
is
again
drawing
national
attention.
Nearly
eight
years
after
the
crime,
the
fate
of
former
Uttar
Pradesh
MLA
Kuldeep
Singh
Sengar
is
set
to
return
to
court
–
this
time
before
a
vacation
bench
of
the
Supreme
Court
on
December
29,
2025.
The
bench,
headed
by
Chief
Justice
of
India
Surya
Kant,
will
hear
the
Central
Bureau
of
Investigation’s
plea
challenging
the
suspension
of
Sengar’s
life
sentence.

The
development
comes
after
the
Delhi
High
Court
granted
conditional
bail
to
Sengar,
saying
he
had
already
spent
over
seven
years
behind
bars.
The
CBI,
refusing
to
let
the
decision
go
uncontested,
reviewed
the
order
and
swiftly
filed
a
Special
Leave
Petition,
arguing
that
the
sentence
must
remain
intact.

Yet
despite
the
temporary
relief,
Sengar
is
not
walking
out
of
prison
–
at
least
not
yet.
Another
case
binds
him
–
the
10-year
sentence
he
is
serving
for
the
custodial
death
of
the
rape
survivor’s
father.
It
is
this
parallel
punishment
that
keeps
him
locked
away,
even
as
the
nation
debates
the
meaning
of
justice
and
accountability.

Inside
courtrooms
and
government
offices,
files
move
and
legal
papers
stack.
But
far
from
the
grandeur
of
judicial
halls,
the
survivor
continues
to
fight
–
this
time
with
a
pen.
In
a
letter
addressed
to
the
CBI,
she
has
demanded
an
FIR
against
the
police
officer
who
first
investigated
her
case.
She
alleges
he
did
not
just
fail
her
–
he
worked
against
her.
According
to
her
statement,
forged
documents,
fake
school
records,
and
fabricated
details
about
a
mobile
phone
were
quietly
inserted
into
the
original
chargesheet,
all
to
protect
the
powerful
accused.

Her
fears
have
resurfaced
since
news
of
Sengar’s
bail
–
fears
of
old
threats,
of
familiar
voices
returning,
of
history
trying
to
repeat
itself.
Activists
and
political
groups
too
have
voiced
alarm,
calling
the
court
order
a
setback
and
a
reminder
of
how
vulnerable
survivors
often
remain
long
after
judgments
are
pronounced.

Meanwhile,
the
CBI
insists
its
stance
is
unwavering.
It
says
it
filed
arguments
in
time
and
will
continue
to
“aggressively
pursue” the
appeal
before
the
Supreme
Court.

For
many
watching,
December
29
is
not
just
about
legal
procedure
–
it
is
about
a
promise
the
system
once
made.
Whether
that
promise
still
stands
remains
to
be
seen.