The Supreme Court on Monday has nullified the release of the convicts in the Bilkis Bano Case. It is crucial to note that the Gujarat government had issued their release order under state remission policy on August 15, 2022 . The Supreme Court has further directed all the convicts to surrender within two weeks.
Upon the Gujarat government’s orders to release all 11 convicts, widespread protests erupted across the country. Subsequently, the matter was taken up to the Supreme Court. On October 17, the Gujarat government submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court elucidating the rationale behind the release of the 11 individuals.
On the state government’s statement given on May 13 of the same year, the Supreme Court had ruled that the previous policy from 1992 would be applied for the release of these individuals. This policy mandates the release from life imprisonment after completing 14 years in confinement. Given that all these individuals had served more than 14 years in prison, they were released following the requisite legal procedures. Additionally, the Central government’s authorization was obtained for this action.
During the communal violence following the Godhra train burning incident, Bilkis was subjected to a gang rape. At that time, she was 21 years old and five months pregnant. Seven members of her family fell victim to the rioters.
The unrest on February 28, 2002, was a consequence of the previous day’s events at the Godhra station. Following this, Bilkis fled from Radhikpur village in Dahod district, accompanied by her three-and-a-half-year-old daughter Saleha and 15 other family members.
On March 3, 2002, the family arrived at Chapparwad village, where, according to the charges, they were assaulted by about 20-30 individuals armed with sickles, swords, and sticks. Eleven of the assailants were implicated. It was during this attack that Bilkis, her mother, and three other women were raped and subjected to severe beatings. Among the 17-member group of Muslims from Radhikpur village, eight were discovered dead, and six were reported missing. Surviving the assault were only Bilkis, a man, and a three-year-old child.
Bilkis remained unconscious for at least three hours post the assault. Upon regaining consciousness, she borrowed clothing from a tribal woman and sought help from a home guard who escorted her to the Limkheda police station. There, she filed a complaint with head constable Somabhai Ghori, who, as per the CBI, “suppressed material facts and produced a distorted and truncated version of her complaint.”
The CBI investigation found that the post-mortem examinations were inadequately conducted to shield the accused. CBI investigators exhumed the bodies of the attack victims, revealing that none of the seven bodies had intact skulls. According to the CBI, after the post-mortems, the heads of the deceased were severed, hindering their identification.
Due to death threats received by Bilkis Bano, the case was transferred from Gujarat to Maharashtra. Charges were pressed against 19 individuals, including six police officers and a government doctor, in a Mumbai court.
In January 2008, a special court convicted 11 individuals in the Bilkis Bano rape case, sentencing them all to life imprisonment. The head constable was found guilty of fabricating false records to protect the accused. Subsequently, the court acquitted seven individuals due to insufficient evidence. One person passed away during the trial.
The Bilkis Bano case regained attention in May 2017 when the Bombay High Court upheld the conviction and life imprisonment of 11 individuals in the gang rape case but acquitted seven, including policemen and doctors. Subsequently, in April 2019, the Supreme Court instructed the Gujarat government to provide Rs 50 lakh as compensation to Bilkis within two weeks, which she declined.
On August 15, the Gujarat government released the 11 convicts serving sentences in the Bilkis Bano rape case. Following their release, a petition was filed in the Supreme Court by CPM leader Subhashini Ali, social workers Ruprekha Verma, Revati Lal, and Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra, seeking to annul the order.
The Gujarat government has now responded to the Supreme Court regarding the release, citing that all these individuals had spent over 14 years in prison. The 1992 regulations stipulated the release of life-term prisoners after 14 years, whereas the 2014 amendments excluded those convicted of heinous crimes from this exemption.
Upon their release, some individuals welcomed these 11 people as heroes, adorning them with tilaks and garlands. These images quickly spread across social media.
However, most people opposed this action, and opposition leaders questioned the motives of the Gujarat government.