Verdict in Unnao rape case involving expelled BJP MLA on December 16

CBI had finished recording the statements of witnesses on December 2

 

A city court on Tuesday reserved the judgment for December 16 in the Unnao rape case against former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his alleged accomplice.

The girl, then a minor, was allegedly sexually assaulted by the accused in June 2017. She alleged that a few days later, she was again kidnapped and gang-raped by his associates.

In the first case, the Central Bureau of Investigation completed its submissions on Monday. The process of recording the statements of defence witnesses concluded on December 2. Based on the charge-sheet, in August, the court had earlier framed charges against Mr. Sengar and co-accused Shashi Singh.

The two were accused of conspiracy, kidnapping, rape and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The other cases

The CBI is pursuing four more cases linked to the victim and her family members. In the gang-rape case, the agency has invoked charges against three persons — Shubham Singh, Naresh Yadav and Brijesh Tiwari.

In the case of her father’s alleged murder in judicial custody on April 9, 2018, the Agency filed a charge-sheet against five persons, including Mr. Sengar’s brother Atul, in July last year. It was alleged that the victim’s father was framed under the Arms Act and sent to jail.

The court framed the charge of murder against Mr. Sengar and other accused persons and, currently, the trial is under way.

In another case, in which Mr. Sengar’s brother had alleged that he was assaulted by the victim’s family members in April 2018, is also being investigated.

‘Accident’

The fifth case pertains to an “accident”, when a truck collided with the car in which the girl, her lawyer and two aunts were travelling in Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli on July 28. Her aunts succumbed to the injuries, while the other two were admitted to a Lucknow hospital.

The victim was shifted to the trauma centre of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, from where she was discharged in September.

In October, the CBI filed a charge-sheet against Mr. Sengar, his associates and the truck driver. Charges of murder and attempted murder were not invoked. While the driver was accused of causing death by negligence, serious injuries and rash driving, Mr. Sengar and the others were charged with conspiracy and criminal intimidation.