A court in Delhi on Wednesday framed fresh charges against Uttar Pradesh MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his accomplice Shashi Singh for allegedly raping a teenager in Unnao in 2017, PTI reported. The court said Sengar has to be tried as a public servant since he is an MLA.

Sengar is a member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly and is in jail for the alleged rape since April 2018 but he was expelled from the BJP only on August 1.

The charges were modified from Sections 3 and 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, which dealt with sexual assault against a child and its punishments to Sections 5(C) and 6 of the Act. These sections deal with punishments for a public servant who sexually assaults a child, and the offences entail a minimum punishment of ten years, as against the earlier seven years.

District Judge Dharmesh Sharma modified the charges based on submissions made by the advocates of the complainant. The court had first framed charges against the MLA under Sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 363 (kidnapping), 366 (kidnapping or inducing a woman to compel for marriage), 376 (rape) and other relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act on August 9.

Sharma had framed charges against Singh for allegedly kidnapping the woman, who is currently admitted in All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi. The woman continues to be critical and is on advanced life support systems. Sengar is also accused of plotting the car crash involving the 19-year-old complainant in Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli district on July 28. The teenager’s two aunts, one of whom was a key witness in the case, were killed. The lawyer who was also injured in the accident is critical and unconscious.

The court on Wednesday also sought details of the complainant’s medical condition by August 16. The court passed the order as the investigating officer said AIIMs had refused to give a report in writing without the court’s directions.

On Tuesday, a Delhi court framed murder charges against Sengar and nine others in connection with the death of the father of the woman who accused him of rape. The man died on April 9, 2018 while in judicial custody for alleged possession of illegal arms, days after his daughter complained about the alleged rape by Sengar. The Central Bureau of Investigation later found the Arms Act case to be false.