Unnao Rape Case: Victim’s Uncle Writes to Police That Witness, Who Died Suddenly, Buried Without Postmortem

The case, along with the Kathua rape case, forced the government to rethink penal laws for rapists.

Lucknow: In yet another twist in the infamous Unnao rape case, the victim’s uncle has written to the police alleging that a witness, who died under mysterious circumstances, was buried without a postmortem. The case has caught the attention of the entire nation when the victim tried immolating herself outside UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s residence. The main accused, BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar, was arrested in April. Later, he alleged that he wasn’t being delivered justice. “The CBI has not given me justice. Raajnetik vyakti hoon, mujhe nyay milna chahiye tha nahin mila (I am a political person, I should get justice). I’ll consult my lawyers on CBI report and fight for justice. I will get justice from the court. All the allegations against me are false,” he said.

The CBI arrested Sengar, who is in Sitapur jail, in April on charges of raping the minor. In July, the CBI filed a chargesheet against Sengar. He was charged under section 120B, 363,366,376(1), 506 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POSCO) Act.

The teen was allegedly raped by the BJP MLA at his residence in Unnao on June 4, 2017, where she had gone seeking a job. When the family complained, the victim’s father was instead booked by the police under the Arms Act on April 3 this year and put into jail on April 5. He later died in a hospital, with the postmortem report mentioning serious injuries on his body.

The Uttar Pradesh government had handed over the rape case to the CBI. The UP Police had refused to arrest Sengar despite serious charges against him, saying the case had been handed over the agency and it was for them to decide on his arrest. The CBI took over the case and questioned Sengar at its Lucknow office. The agency re-registered the FIRs and brought the MLA to its office for questioning, but didn’t arrest him then.