BJP lawmaker Kuldeep Sengar has been in prison for more than a year over the alleged rape.
Highlights
- Kuldeep Sengar used to make threat calls from jail, according to FIR
- Rape survivor's uncle alleged pressure on family to withdraw complaint
- Teen's family has alleged that Kuldeep Sengar engineered Sunday's crash
Jailed BJP legislator Kuldeep Sengar used to make calls from inside prison to threaten the family of the Unnao teenager whom he allegedly raped two years ago, a police complaint filed a day after her accident notes.
A murder case was filed against the BJP leader and nine others after the survivor injured in Sunday's accident and two of her aunts died. Their vehicle had a collision with a truck in Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh.
The girl's family alleged the lawmaker - a four-time legislator who has been in prison for more than a year - had engineered the accident.
In the First Information Report (FIR), the teen's uncle has alleged that when they went to the police to file a complaint in the rape case, they were told that Kuldeep Sengar is a lawmaker with the ruling BJP. The uncle alleged that the police asked them to "compromise" as they feared losing their jobs.
Later, Kuldeep Sengar had called them from the jail, asking them to change their statements in court "if we wanted to live", he said.
The man is serving a life term at a jail in Raebareli in a separate case and the family was on their way to meet him when the accident took place.
Alleging that there was constant pressure on the family to withdraw the case and that no action was taken despite repeated complaints, the First Information Report finally filed by the police claimed they received calls from the BJP lawmaker in front of policemen posted at the village for security.
The family was told by Kuldeep Sengar's men that they would be killed if they do not settle the case with him, the complaint notes. The lawmaker's supporters even told them that the entire government stands with him, the girl's uncle has alleged.
"Sengar's men used to scare us. They used to say, 'you will not be able to do anything'. The police used to ask us to compromise. They used to say 'khatam karo ye kahani (end this story)'," the rape survivor's cousin told NDTV.
According to the FIR, threats from Sengar and his men increased over the last few months after the Allahabad High Court rejected the request of a co-accused in the rape case for bail. The girl's uncle said he had asked the family to move from Unnao to Delhi.
The teen has claimed that she was sexually assaulted by the lawmaker when she went to his Unnao home to seek a job in 2017.
Her father died in police custody, arrested for allegedly possessing illegal arms. Before the arrest, he was beaten up by Atul Sengar, the brother of Kuldeep Sengar, and his men. Atul Sengar has also been arrested and accused of murder.
The police personnel in charge of the security of the rape survivor had informed Kuldeep Sengar of her movements, according to the FIR.
The police had said initial investigations indicate that it was an accident. The state government transferred the accident case to the Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI on Monday night.
The girl, who sustained massive injuries, is critical and admitted to a hospital in Lucknow. Two of her aunts, who were in the vehicle died in the crash. Her lawyer was also injured, and is undergoing treatment.