New Delhi3 hours ago
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Bilkis Bano has challenged in the Supreme Court the decision to release the 11 gangrape convicts.
Hearing on Bilkis Bano’s petition against the release of the gangrape convicts was held in the Supreme Court on Tuesday. During this, the court reprimanded the Center and the Gujarat government for not showing the files related to the release of the convicts. Justice KM Joseph said that you do not want the bench to hear the matter.
Justice Joseph said that I will retire on 16th June. I will be on leave during that time, so my last working day is May 19th. We had made it clear that the matter would be taken up for settlement. You may win or lose the case, but don’t forget your duty towards the court. After this, the Central-Gujarat government has agreed to present the files related to the release of the 11 convicts in the court.
The next hearing in the case will be on May 9. On that day the court will issue directions regarding the next hearing. After the formation of the new bench, the next hearing will be held in the second week of July. Right now the bench of Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagaratna is hearing the matter.
Government’s allegation- Bilkis lied in the court
On the other hand, the lawyer appearing in the court on behalf of the Center and the Gujarat government termed Bilkis’ petition as fake and said that she had lied in her affidavit. The government’s counsel said some of the 11 acquitted convicts were not served notices by Bilkis.
Even after this, Bilkis told in the affidavit filed in the court that notice has been given to all the culprits. For this action should be taken against Bilkis Bano. Advocate Shobha Gupta, appearing in the court on behalf of Bano, replied to this. I had sent notices on mail to all the culprits.
Gujarat government objected to Bilkis’s petition
The Gujarat government also opposed the hearing of petitions filed by Subhashini Ali and Mahua Moitra for the release of the 11 convicts. The lawyers said their petitions have nothing to do with the case. Also we have objection to Bano’s petition. Hearing on this would be like opening Pandora’s box.
In her petition, Bilkis has accused the Gujarat government of prematurely releasing the convicts in her case. He has challenged the decision to release 11 convicts in the Supreme Court.
The court had asked the government for files related to the release of the culprits.
The last hearing in this matter was held on 18 April. The bench had asked the government the reason for the release of the convicts. The court had said – today it happened with Bilkis, tomorrow it can happen with anyone.
While hearing the petition, the court asked the Center and the Gujarat government to present the files related to premature release of the convicts. The court had said that if you do not tell the reason for releasing the culprits, then we will draw our own conclusion.
SC asked- What message are you giving by releasing the culprits?
The Supreme Court said that this is a case where a pregnant woman was gang-raped and her seven relatives were murdered. How can you compare apples to oranges? How can you compare the murder of one person with mass murder? It is a crime against a community and society. We believe that you should use your power and discretion for the good of the public. What message are you sending by releasing the culprits?
The convicts were released on August 15
Bilkis Bano was raped and her family members were murdered during the 2002 Godhra carnage. 11 people were convicted in this case. On August 15 last year, the Gujarat government released all the convicts from jail.
After this, Bilkis Bano filed a petition against it on 30 November 2022, knocking on the door of the Supreme Court. Apart from this, social activist Subhashini Ali and TMC MP Mahua Moitra demanded the cancellation of the Gujarat government’s order to release the 11 convicts in the case.
Bilkis Bano with her husband Yakub Rasool.
Bilkis had filed two petitions
Bilkis Bano had filed two petitions in the Supreme Court on 30 November. Challenging the release of 11 convicts in the first petition, they had demanded to send them back to jail immediately. At the same time, in the second petition, there was a demand to reconsider the court’s order given in May, in which the court had said that the decision on the release of the convicts would be taken by the Gujarat government. On this Bilkis said that when the trial of the case was going on in Maharashtra, then how can the Gujarat government take a decision?
Bilkis was gang-raped in the post-Godhra riots.
Riots broke out in Gujarat on 3 March 2002 after the Godhra carnage. During the riots, an angry mob barged into the house of Bilkis Bano at Randhikpur village in Limkheda taluka of Dahod district. To escape the rioters, Bilkis hid in a field with her family. Then Bilkis was 21 years old and she was 5 months pregnant.
The rioters gang-raped Bilkis. His mother and three more women were also raped. During this, the attackers killed 7 out of 17 members of Bilkis’s family. At the same time, 6 people went missing, who were never found. Only Bilkis, a man and a three-year-old child survived the attack.
In January 2008, the Special Court of CBI gave the sentence
Bilkis was 21 years old and pregnant at the time of the accident. In the riots, 6 members of his family managed to escape after saving their lives. The gangrape accused were arrested in 2004. In January 2008, a special CBI court sentenced 11 convicts to life imprisonment. The Bombay High Court had upheld the conviction of the accused. The accused were first kept in Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai and then in Nashik Jail. After about 9 years, all were sent to Godhra Sub Jail.
Also read this special news of Bhaskar related to Bilkis Bano…
Court-CBI’s objection, then how Bilkis’s convicts were released; Broke the rule 44 times, did not pay the fine
In the case of premature release of Bilkis Bano’s accused, the Gujarat government could not present the documents even on 18th April. The court reprimanded the government on this. The court had said that ‘if you do not show the files, we will consider it as contempt of court’. You are bound to produce the records. Why are you fighting with us? Read full news…
Bilkis Bano’s daughter is alive, will become a lawyer: was in the stomach during the gangrape, now preparing to fight the mother’s battle
Bilkis Bano, who was 5 months pregnant, was raped not once but several times on March 3, 2002. According to what was known so far, Bilkis’ unborn child had not survived. However, now a shocking information has come to the fore that the child who was in Bilkis’s womb, survived. After 4 months she became a mother and a baby girl was born. Read full news…
A mob surrounded us with swords and sickles, 6 women were gang-raped at that place, including Bilkis and my mother.
There are only two living characters in the Bilkis case, one is Bilkis himself and the other is Saddam, a child of just 7 years old at the time of the incident. Saddam was the only eyewitness of the entire incident. Saddam’s mother was also raped along with Bilkis. Remembering that day, Saddam says, ‘When I regained consciousness, there were sword wounds on Ammi’s chest. There was not a single cloth on his body. I shouted loudly, mother get up – mother get up, but she did not get up. she was dead’ Read the full news…
2. Suleman-Abesi Khat did not forget that day, if Bilkis had been stopped, 13 lives would have been saved.
Bilkis Bano and her group had reached Kuanjar village while running away from their village. At that time Suleman was the sarpanch of the village. They remember that day i.e. 28 February and still repent. Suleman was not in the village that day. They say, ‘Had I been there that day, perhaps this accident would not have happened. Bilkis would have survived. Everyone would have been saved. Bilkis had reached Pathanpur village from Kuanjar. Here he got help from Sarpanch Abesi Khat. Abesi says that ‘we did not want them to leave, but they did not stop’. Read the full news…