Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a jailed four-time lawmaker accused of raping the Unnao teen survivor, threatening her family and attempt to murder, has been expelled by the BJP amid waves of public outrage.
The BJP’s move, described by critics as a year in coming, comes days after the Unnao rape survivor and her lawyer were critically wounded and two of her relatives were killed in a car crash on Sunday involving a speeding truck that had its number plate painted black. The girl is still critical and on the ventilator, a hospital said today in its latest update.
The girl’s family has accused Sengar of plotting the crash, which is being investigated by the CBI. The BJP was repeatedly confronted with questions about its apparent reluctance to remove the lawmaker or take any strong action against him. The Unnao rape case became a saga of police callousness, administrative neglect and the harassment of a young girl and her helpless family by a politician who seemed to enjoy leniency at every step. Despite sharp criticism, the ruling party acted only a year after his arrest for rape.
Earlier this week, when the case returned to the media glare after the road accident, the BJP had claimed that Kuldeep Sengar had been suspended, but had refused to say when this step was taken.
