Mumbai, Dec. 25 -- Former Home Minister and senior Congress leader Sushil Kumar Shinde on Thursday said that the bail to Unnao rape case convict Kuldeep Singh Sengar was "unfortunate" and urged the government to take cognisance of the matter.

"The government must take cognisance of this matter, as it is a very unfortunate incident. A convict getting bail in this case should be subject to a re-appeal," Shinde told reporters here.

Earlier, CPI general secretary D Raja criticised the bail order. He also said that the government is trying to pressure the CBI.

"It is a serious issue. Our judiciary must be neutral and function independently, because in a democracy like ours today, the ordinary people consider the judiciary the last hope for ...