(All names in the story have been changed to protect the villagers’ identity.)

"Voh MLA hain, unke paas apne aadmi hain. Hum unke baare mein kuch bole toh maare jayengein, (he is an MLA and has his henchmen. If we speak against him, we will be killed),” 70-year-old farmer Sonaram tells The Quint, sitting a stone’s throw away from the Unnao rape survivor’s home, some 70 kilometres from Lucknow.

The fear that grips villagers when BJP MLa Kuldeep Sengar’s name is uttered is palpable. They are sympathetic towards the survivor’s family but tell us they severed communication with them, did not provide them moral support and refrained from inviting them for functions... leaving them to fight their battle alone.