The courtroom paused before choosing belief over paperwork.
In the long-running fallout of the Unnao custodial death case, the Delhi High Court has turned to medicine for answers. Faced with conflicting claims over Jaideep Singh Sengar’s health, the court has directed the Director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences to convene an independent medical board to determine whether he is, as he insists, battling Stage IV oral cancer.
Sengar, convicted in 2020 for his role in the custodial death of the father of a rape survivor in Unnao, is seeking an extension of the interim suspension of his sentence on medical grounds. He claims his condition is grave: advanced oral cancer with suspected recurrence, accompanied by complications including osteoradionecrosis, trismus and chronic jaw infection. According to his plea, he underwent surgery at AIIMS in 2020 and continues to require specialised treatment unavailable within prison walls.
But the claim has run into stiff resistance from the Central Bureau of Investigation. The agency placed before the court a verification report asserting that several prescriptions and medical records submitted in support of Sengar’s plea were either fabricated or belonged to another patient altogether. While acknowledging that some earlier treatment documents appear authentic, the agency maintained that there is no reliable evidence to show he is presently suffering from Stage IV cancer.
The dispute over paperwork has now shifted the focus from files to facts.
Observing that suspension of sentence on medical grounds must rest on objective and credible medical assessment, the High Court ordered a comprehensive evaluation. The AIIMS medical board has been tasked with determining not only whether Sengar is suffering from cancer or any other life-threatening illness, but also the stage and severity of the disease, if found.
The board must further clarify whether adequate treatment can be administered within the jail hospital system or through supervised visits to government medical facilities.
The Jail Superintendent has been directed to ensure Sengar’s production before the board and to place all relevant medical records at its disposal. The matter will return to court after the board submits its findings.
For now, the legal battle has entered a clinical phase — one where diagnosis, not allegation, will shape what comes next.
