Unnao rape case: Kuldeep Sengar seeks extension of interim bail in Delhi High Court

New Delhi: Expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar on Thursday sought before the Delhi High Court an extension of his interim bail for five months on medical grounds in the Unnao rape case of 2017.

A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma, which had granted the interim bail till December 20 to the politician serving life term in the case, posted the hearing on December 20.

The bench asked for a report from the AIIMS medical board to be supplied to his counsel.

It observed aside from a previous medical report, AIIMS in a communication raised objections over the number of visitors coming to see Sengar.

Large number of persons visited him which compromised medical care and impacted daily routine in AIIMS, the court said. "AIIMS has never sent a communication before," it added.

Sengar's counsel however said only his family members had visited him during the medical evaluation.

On December 5, the court temporarily suspended Sengar's sentence and directed his medical evaluation at AIIMS. Claims of his suffering from various ailments, including cataract, were made.

The former BJP politician is serving a 10-year jail term in connection with the custodial death of the Unnao rape survivor's father and was granted interim bail in the case till December 20 by another bench.

His appeal against the December 2019 trial court's verdict in the rape case is pending before the high court. He has sought its quashing.

The minor girl was allegedly kidnapped and raped by Sengar in 2017.

On March 13, 2020, Sengar was sentenced to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment and was fined Rs 10 lakh, in the custodial death case. The court had also awarded a 10-year jail term to Sengar's brother Atul Singh Sengar and five others.

The father of the rape survivor was reportedly arrested at the behest of Sengar in a case under the Arms Act. He died in custody on April 9, 2018.

The rape case and other connected cases were transferred to Delhi from a trial court in UP on the directions of the Supreme Court on August 1, 2019.