- Rahul Gandhi has assured escalation of case and promised full support to the Unnao survivor's family
- The survivor protested against the Delhi High Court's bail to Kuldeep Sengar, fearing threats and injustice
- The family has requested for a lawyer, relocation, and a job; Rahul Gandhi has agreed to assist them
The survivor in the Unnao rape case and her mother met Congress's Rahul Gandhi this evening, hours after the elderly woman was manhandled by the Central paramilitary personnel. The meeting took place at the 10 Janpath Road residence of Sonia Gandhi, a day after Rahul Gandhi returned from his visit to Germany. Sonia Gandhi was also present at the meeting, which went on for over an hour. Sources said Rahul Gandhi has given her the assurance that the case will be escalated, justice will be delivered. They will extend all possible help to the family.
The survivor and her mother have been protesting against the Delhi High Court's relief to former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who has challenged his conviction in the rape case. He will be out of jail till court reaches a decision on his appeal. The paramilitary personnel had not allowed the girl and her mother to address the media and also forced the elderly woman to jump off a moving bus.
The High Court's decision has generated massive controversy, with the Opposition vehemently criticising the Centre.
Calling the Delhi High Court's decision "completely shocking", the survivor said, "We have gone so many years back and forth with the judiciary and this is what the outcome is? We only want one thing, justice. We will appeal to the Supreme Court".
At the meeting with Gandhi, she said she has full faith in the Supreme Court. The survivor has also appealed to the Prime Minister and expressed her wish to meet him.
The family had three key requests to Gandhi: A top lawyer to fight against Sengar in the Supreme Court; relocation to a Congress-ruled state as they fear being murdered; and a job for the woman's husband. Gandhi has agreed to help on all points.
In a post on X earlier today, Rahul Gandhi questioned if the survivor was getting mistreated because she has raised her voice against injustice.
"Is such treatment of a gang rape victim justified?" he wrote in Hindi on X. "Bail for rapists and treating survivors like criminals -- what kind of justice is this? We are not just becoming a dead economy -- with such inhuman incidents, we are also turning into a dead society," read a rough translation of his post in Hindi.
क्या एक गैंगरेप पीड़िता के साथ ऐसा व्यवहार उचित है?
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) December 24, 2025
क्या उसकी "गलती" ये है कि वो न्याय के लिए अपनी आवाज़ उठाने की हिम्मत कर रही है?
उसके अपराधी (पूर्व BJP MLA) को ज़मानत मिलना बेहद निराशाजनक और शर्मनाक है - खासकर तब, जब पीड़िता को बार-बार प्रताड़ित किया जा रहा हो, और वो डर के... https://t.co/BZqrVNXMOy
After the court's decision, the woman - who was sexually assaulted by Sengar in 2017 - was protesting at India Gate with her mother and lawyer-activist Yogita Bhayana but got detained. This morning, the mother and daughter planned to address the media at Mandi House and the CRPF came to transport them in a bus. The vehicle, however, did not stop at Mandi House -- the CRPF later said they did not receive permission to protest.
When the bus drove past Mandi house and the elderly woman wanted to deboard, she was asked to jump out.
Visuals from the bus showed the survivor's mother standing at the gate of the moving bus when the CRPF personnel elbowed her. After being pushed several times, the woman jumped off the moving bus, which drove away with her daughter still inside.
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