Unnao rape case: CBI confirms charge against Kuldeep Sengar; finds local police at fault
In a major development in the Unnao rape case, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday confirmed the rape charge against the accused BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar.
The CBI corroborated the survivor’s charge that Sengar raped her at his home on June 4 last year while his female accomplice, Shashi Singh, stood guard outside the room.
The investigative agency also claimed that the accused lawmaker was shielded by the local police. While the survivor had named him, the police did not name the MLA and some other accused either in the FIR or the chargesheet.
Speaking to media over the report of CBI corroborating her charge, the survivor demanded death sentence for Sengar. “I demand death penalty for BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar for raping me and murdering my father,” she said.
Meanwhile, the survivor’s uncle demanded protection for the victim family along with death penalty for the accused MLA.
“We demand protection for our family so that we can give our statement before the court fearlessly. We demand death penalty for Kuldeep Sengar,” he said.
According to a Times of India report, the central agency has recorded the survivor’s statement before a magistrate under CrPC Section 164, in which she “stood by” the allegations. Statements recorded under Section 164 are admissible in court as evidence.
The agency also claimed that the police deliberately delayed the girl’s medical examination and didn’t send the vaginal swab or her clothes to the forensic laboratory.
On June 4, 2017, the victim along with Shashi Singh had approached Sengar at his home in Uttar Pradesh’s Makhi village, where the incident took place. Singh, who was later held by police, stood guard outside the room as Sengar and his associates proceeded to gang-rape the woman.
On June 11, she was again abducted by three youths and was gangraped inside a car over a period of eight to nine days.
In February this year, the girl's family had moved the court, seeking to include the MLA's name in the case. Subsequently, the victim's father was booked by the police under the Arms Act on April 3 and put in jail on April 5.
Frustrated with the alleged police inaction and coercion from influential people, the victim attempted self-immolation in front of Chief Minister Adityanath's residence on April 8.
The next day, her father died in jail with the post-mortem examination report suggesting serious injuries on his body.
Sengar, a four-time MLA, enjoys an immense clout, cutting across party lines, in rural areas of Unnao district, a semi-urban area about 70 km from Lucknow.
A video, purportedly showing the victim's father before his death, has gone viral. Several television news channels have also aired it.
In the video, the victim's father alleged he was mercilessly beaten up, including with rifle butts, by the MLA's brother and others in presence of police personnel.
