Unnao Rape Case: Supreme Court Stays Delhi HC Order Suspending Kuldeep Singh Sengar’s Life Sentence

The three-judge bench of CJI Surya Kant, Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih passed the interim order after hearing detailed submissions from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and Senior Advocates Siddharth Dave and N. Hariharan, who represented Sengar. Advocate Mehmood Pracha also appeared for the victim.

At the outset, Solicitor General Mehta described the matter as a “horrific case of rape of a child”, emphasizing that Sengar had been convicted under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 5 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

“There is no doubt that he is convicted for rape,” Mehta told the Bench, adding that under the amended law, the punishment for such offences is now a minimum of 20 years, extendable to life imprisonment.

He also noted that the appeal against Sengar’s conviction was still pending before the Delhi High Court, and argued that suspending his sentence during this pendency undermined the gravity of the offence.

CJI Surya Kant queried whether the concept of a “public servant” under the POCSO Act was relevant when the victim was a minor.

“Is it your argument that the concept of being a public servant is alien when the victim is a minor?” asked the CJI.

“Absolutely, yes,” replied SG Mehta.

The Solicitor General explained that penetrative sexual assault is an independent offence, punishable with a minimum of 10 years’ imprisonment, with aggravated circumstances applying when the offender holds a position of dominance over the victim; such as a public servant or police officer.

He urged the court to adopt a “contextual and purposive interpretation” of the POCSO provisions, stating that although public servant is not defined under the Act, it is defined under the IPC and should be interpreted harmoniously.

After hearing the arguments, the Chief Justice observed: “Tentatively, we are inclined to stay the suspension of sentence of Kuldeep Singh Sengar.”

The Court subsequently stayed the Delhi High Court’s December 23, 2025 order, which had suspended Sengar’s life imprisonment, directing that he shall not be released pursuant to the High Court’s order.

“There is a legal issue that needs consideration,” CJI Surya Kant noted, while issuing notice in the matter.

Solicitor General Mehta, urging immediate relief, said: “I urge my lordships to stay the order. We are answerable to the child who was 15 years old.”

Towards the end of the hearing, Senior Advocates N. Hariharan and Siddharth Dave pointed out that some social media accounts are making allegations against the Delhi High Court bench consisting of Justice Subramanian Prasad and Justice Harish Vaidyanathan which granted bail to Sengar despite CBI’s resistance

Hariharan cautioned that such behaviour bordered on contempt of court, while Dave said photos of judges were being circulated online with captions urging the public to “identify these judges.”

Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India was contacted on this issue since he represented CBI before the Supreme Court

SG Mehta unequivocally and categorically said that both the judges of the High Court are brilliant judges with unimpeachable integrity. They are few of the finest judge of the country. He clearly said that any attempt to malign these two judges must be strongly condemned. He fully trusts both the judges. There are always some elements who attempt to browbeat honest judges. Such devious forces must not be encouraged. He said his opinion on behalf of the party which lost before the bench of these two honest and brilliant judges must put an end to this controversy generated by some unscrupulous vested interests

Expressing deep concern, CJI Surya Kant said: “It is very unfortunate. We are not sitting in ivory towers. People try to take political advantage, don’t try to browbeat the system.”

The Bench clarified that the rape survivor had a statutory right to file a separate Special Leave Petition (SLP) before the apex court. “In case she needs any free legal aid, the Supreme Court is there, she can also engage her own counsel,” the order stated.

The appeal assails the High Court’s December 23 order granting Sengar suspension of sentence under Section 389(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure during the pendency of his criminal appeal against conviction.

Sengar was convicted in December 2019 by a trial court for raping a minor girl and for committing aggravated penetrative sexual assault under the POCSO Act. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, with the trial court observing that there were no mitigating circumstances. It underscored that Sengar, as a public servant in a democratic setup, had betrayed public trust, noting that “a single act of depravity” was sufficient to do so. The case relates to allegations that the minor survivor was kidnapped and raped by Sengar between June 11 and 20, 2017, and later sold for ₹60,000. She was subsequently recovered at the Maakhi police station in Uttar Pradesh.

A Division Bench of Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar ruled that Sengar could not be categorised as a “public servant” under Section 5(c) of the POCSO Act or Section 376(2)(b) of the IPC. 

A Special Leave Petition has also been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the High Court's decision suspending the life sentence of former MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who is serving life imprisonment in the Unnao rape case. The petition filed by Advocates Anjale Patel and Pooja Shilpkar through Advocate-on-Record Sanjeev Malhotra seeks cancellation of bail granted to Kuldeep Senger in relation to Unnao rape case.

Advocate Hitendra Gandhi had also written to the Chief Justice of the High Court on the administrative side, seeking urgent listing of the appeal arising from the 2017 Unnao rape case after the High Court recently suspended the life sentence of former Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar during the pendency of his appeal.

Case Title: CBI Vs Kuldeep Singh Sengar and another matter

Bench: CJI Surya Kant, Justices JK Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih

Hearing Date: December 29, 2025