The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the Delhi High Court’s order that had suspended the life sentence of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case.

A vacation bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices J K Maheshwari and Augustine George Masih also issued notice to Sengar, directing him to respond to the CBI’s plea challenging the high court decision.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, urged the bench to halt the operation of the high court order. The bench agreed, observing that the matter required detailed consideration and that Sengar shall not be released from custody in the meantime.

“Substantial questions of law arise for consideration,” the bench noted, posting the matter for further hearing after four weeks.

The Delhi High Court had suspended Sengar’s jail term, citing that he had already spent seven years and five months in prison, and granted suspension of his sentence until the pendency of his appeal challenging the December 2019 trial court verdict in the rape case.

However, Sengar will remain in jail as he is also serving a 10-year sentence in the custodial death of the victim’s father and has not been granted bail in that case.

The Unnao rape case, along with related matters, was transferred from a trial court in Uttar Pradesh to Delhi on Supreme Court directions on August 1, 2019.