Akhilesh urges court hearings in ‘language people understand’

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday called for “linguistic inclusivity” during court hearings after the Unnao rape survivor reportedly expressed concern that arguments of the case were held in English in the court.

Yadav made the remarks in a post on X in connection with the Unnao rape case involving former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar.

Sharing an image of a media report highlighting the survivor’s concern, Yadav wrote in Hindi, “Insaf ki zubaan samajh aane se hi insaf hoga,” and added that “linguistic inclusion” is a decisive factor in the pursuit of justice.

In the same post, he said in English that the “dispensation of justice depends on the use of a language that is understandable to all parties involved. Linguistic inclusivity is a determinative element in the true administration of justice.”

On December 23, the Delhi High Court suspended the jail term of Sengar, who is serving life imprisonment in the Unnao rape case, saying he has already served seven years and five months in prison.

Sengar’s sentence has been suspended by the high court till the pendency of his appeal challenging his conviction and sentence in the rape case. He has challenged a December 2019 trial court verdict in the case.

He will, however, remain in jail since he is also serving 10 years’ imprisonment in the custodial death case of the victim’s father and has not been granted bail in that case.

Imposing several conditions, the HC directed Sengar, who allegedly kidnapped and raped the survivor when she was a minor, to furnish a personal bond of Rs 15 lakh with three sureties of the like amount.

It also directed him not to come within a 5-km radius of the survivor’s residence in Delhi and not to threaten her or her mother. Violation of any of the conditions would lead to the cancellation of bail, the HC said.

The Unnao rape case had drawn nationwide attention in 2018 after allegations of sexual assault against Sengar, who was later convicted by a trial court. The survivor and her family have repeatedly alleged harassment and sought protection during the course of the trial.