Delhi HC grants Unnao rape convict 4 days for cataract surgery

He surrendered on December 20 after the court refused to grant him an opportunity of early hearing of his plea seeking an extension of 30 days of the interim suspension of sentence to undergo cataract surgery. AIIMS Delhi fixed the date of surgery on January 24.

A division bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar directed that Sengar will get himself admitted to AIIMS on January 24 for the cataract surgery and in case it is not performed, he would surrender the same day to jail by 7 pm.

In case it is performed on January 24, Sengar will surrender to jail latest by January 27 at 12 pm.

A Delhi police constable would be deputed at the private ward where Sengar will be hospitalised and a CBI officer will remain in touch with him on a daily basis, the bench directed.

The division bench’s relief came in the Unnao rape case in which he was sentenced to life. His appeal challenging the trial court’s verdict is pending before the high court.

Minutes after the division bench’s order, Sengar’s counsels also sought similar relief before a single bench in the second case in which he was awarded a 10-year jail term in 2020 for the custodial death of the victim’s father.

Justice Vikas Mahajan also extended the interim suspension of sentence for the same period and on the same terms as imposed by the division bench of Justices Chawla and Shankar.