New Delhi: The Supreme Court has stayed a Delhi High Court order suspending ex BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar's life term for the rape of a woman – then a minor – in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao in 2017.

The court acknowledged a responsibility to the survivor and issued notice to the ex-Bharatiya Janata Party leader based on a plea by the Central Bureau of Investigation – the lead investigating and prosecution agency – challenging the High Court order. Sengar was given four weeks to respond.

The court noted drily that there is no question of compromise personal liberty; Kuldeep Sengar remains in jail for now, serving a concurrent sentence over the custodial death of the woman's father.

A vacation bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and including Justices JK Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih also allowed the Unnao rape survivor to intervene with her petition. Ahead of Monday's hearing, the survivor said she had faith in the Supreme Court and appealed to UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to ensure the safety of her family and herself. She claimed Sengar had bribed officials, including the Investigating Officer and an unnamed Delhi High Court judge, and said her family had already suffered severely since Sengar was given bail.