Following the suspension of the jail term of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who was serving life imprisonment in the 2017 Unnao rape case, the victim, her mother, and a woman activist held a protest at India Gate against the Delhi High Court's order.
Sengar's sentence was suspended by the high court till the pendency of his appeal challenging his conviction and sentence in the rape case.
He has challenged a December 2019 trial court verdict in the case.
The Delhi Police removed the victim, her mother, and activist Yogita Bhayana from the protest site.
However, Sengar will remain in prison since he is also serving 10 years imprisonment in the custodial death case of the victim's father and has not been granted bail in that case.
The Unnao rape case survivor told PTI that she was not satisfied with the verdict.
"I have small children. There is an elderly, differently-abled mother-in-law and my husband at home. The safety of my children is the biggest concern," she said.
She alleged that during the course of the trial, her family was repeatedly forced to make rounds of the court and questioned why security cover provided to her family members, legal aides and witnesses was withdrawn.
"Usually, a verdict is pronounced within two or three days after the conclusion of arguments. But in this case, the decision came after three months. Even before the verdict, security for the family and witnesses was withdrawn," she alleged.
"In the serious crime where my father was murdered and I was subjected to rape, the accused is granted bail after serving a few years in prison. This raises the question of what kind of justice this is," she added.
What does the HC order say?
The Delhi High Court imposed several conditions on Sengar, directing him to furnish a personal bond of ₹15 lakh with three sureties of the like amount.
The HC also told him not to come within a five-km radius of the victim's residence in Delhi and not to threaten her or her mother.
"Violation of any of the conditions would lead to cancellation of bail," the high court said in its 53-page verdict.
The HC said that letting Sengar be in jail when he has already spent about seven years and five months in prison would be violative of Article 21 (protection of life and liberty) of the Constitution.
About the victim's apprehension about danger to her life, the court said it expects that she will continue to get CRPF cover.
"At the same time, however, the argument of keeping the appellant (Sengar) in custody because of threat perception to the victim/ survivor, in the opinion of this court, is not a tenable argument to deny the benefit of section 389 CrPC to the appellant," it added.
The high court also directed Sengar to deposit his passport with the trial court and to report to the local police station every Monday at 10 AM.
About the case
Sengar had kidnapped the minor and raped her in 2017.
The rape case and other connected cases were transferred to Delhi from a trial court in Uttar Pradesh on the directions of the Supreme Court on August 1, 2019.
