NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday stepped in to stay the Delhi high court order that suspended the former BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar’s life sentence in the 2017 Unnao rape case. On the Central Investigation Bureau’s plea challenging the HC order, Supreme Court bench flagged serious legal concerns over the interpretation of the law and the implications it could have for accountability of elected representatives.A three-judge vacation bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, along with Justices JK Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih, stayed the execution of the high court’s December 23 order that had suspended Sengar’s life sentence under the POCSO Act.
Supreme Court made it clear that Sengar would not be released from jail, noting that he continues to remain in custody in another case related to the custodial death of the rape survivor’s father.While acknowledging that sentence suspensions are not usually stayed without hearing the convict, the bench said the “peculiar facts” of the case warranted immediate intervention.”Issue notice. We have heard solicitor general Tushar Mehta for CBI and senior advocate for the convict… Counter will be filed in four weeks. We are conscious of the fact that when a convict or an undertrial has been released, such orders are not ordinarily stayed by this court without hearing such persons. But in view of peculiar facts where the convict is convicted for a separate offence, we stay the operation of the Delhi high court order dated December 23, and thus the respondent shall not be released pursuant to the said order,” the bench ordered.
The ‘public servant’ interpretation
At the heart of the CBI plea is whether an MLA can be treated as a “public servant” for the purpose of aggravated offences under the POCSO Act.Appearing for the CBI, solicitor general Tushar Mehta argued that Sengar, who was a powerful MLA at the time of the crime, exercised dominance over the minor survivor and squarely fell within the scope of aggravated sexual assault under the law.Sengar’s counsel, senior advocates Siddharth Dave and N Hariharan, countered this by arguing that an MLA could not automatically be treated as a public servant under POCSO.The Supreme Court, however, expressed unease with the high court’s reasoning, warning that such an interpretation could lead to lawmakers being exempted from stricter punishment.”We are worried that a constable or patwari will be a public servant under the Act, but an MLA or MP will not be and get exempted,” the bench observed.
Why it matters
Section 5 of the POCSO Act treats sexual assault as “aggravated” if committed by a public servant or a person in a position of authority, attracting a minimum punishment of 20 years that can extend to life imprisonment.In 2019, a Delhi trial court had held that Sengar qualified as a public servant and sentenced him to imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life. The high court’s suspension of that sentence had triggered sharp criticism, with the CBI arguing that it diluted the intent of the law.The Supreme Court has now issued notice to Sengar and will examine whether the high court erred in excluding legislators from the definition of “public servant” under POCSO Act.
Survivor welcomes SC intervention
Meanwhile, the Unnao rape survivor welcomed the Supreme Court’s order, saying she had full faith in the justice system and felt reassured by the apex court’s intervention.”I am very happy. I had faith in the Supreme Court. I will ensure that he is given a death sentence,” she said speaking to the reporters.The survivor’s mother has asked for security for her family and advocate saying, “My family needs security. Our advocates need security. I request that the government keep us all safe.”(With agency inputs) Go to Source
