Unnao rape case: Expelled BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar gets life imprisonment

New Delhi, Dec 20: Expelled BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar was sentenced to life by a Delhi court in connection with the 2017 Unnao rape case.

District Judge Dharmesh Sharma, who had reserved the verdict on quantum of sentence in the forenoon, also imposed a fine of Rs 25 lakh in the case.

"He is a public servant. People repose faith in him. He has betrayed it. He did everything possible to harm & scare the family," the judge said while reading out the verdict.

It also directed that the rape survivor be paid an additional Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the mother of the victim.

The Court also orders CBI to assess threat perception and offer the necessary protection to the victim and her family; CBI has also been directed to provide safe house to victim and her family.

The Central Bureau of Investigation had urged the court to give maximum punishment of life term, prescribed under the law, to the politician.

The counsel for the CBI and the complainant sought maximum punishment for Sengar, saying the court must consider the "cry of the girls in heinous crimes".

While supporting CBI's submission, the counsel appearing for the rape survivor also sought adequate monetary compensation for her.

The counsel appearing for Sengar, however, urged the court to give minimum punishment to him, a 10-year jail term, saying he had no prior criminal record.

"He had a political career without any blemish. Since 2002-till date he has been elected repeatedly as a member of the legislative assembly by the public," advocate Tanveer Ahmed Mir, appearing for Sengar, said, adding that the convict did not have a "depraved mentality".

The court had on Monday convicted Sengar for rape under the Indian Penal Code and the Pocso Act for the offence by a public servant committing penetrative sexual assault against a child. The rape survivor was a minor when she was assaulted.