SC Transfers Unnao Cases To Delhi Court

Court also orders 25 lakh interim compensation and CRPF protection to the rape survivor.

- Krishnadas Rajagopal

The Supreme Court on Thursday transferred five cases of crimes committed against the Unnao rape survivor and her family from a CBI court in Lucknow to its counterpart in Delhi and ordered the Uttar Pradesh government to pay her 25 lakh in interim compensation.

A Bench, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi, ordered that the trial in the Unnao cases be held on a day-to-day basis and completed within 45 days.

Judge named

The court went the extra mile to zero in on District Judge Dinesh Sharma as the trial judge.

Four of these cases are the rape of the minor in 2017; a false case foisted on her father under the Arms Act by conniving police officers; the custodial death of the survivor’s father after he was arrested in the Arms case; and a second instance of gang rape of the survivor. Though the CBI has filed chargesheets in the four cases, the Lucknow court is yet to frame charges against the accused persons.

Probe into ‘accident’

The fifth case concerns the ‘accident’ on July 28 when a truck rammed into a car carrying the now 19-year-old rape survivor.

Days before the accident, she had reached out to the CJI in a letter. But her cry for help largely remained unnoticed in the court’s Registry for almost a fortnight.