WATCH | Celebrations Outside Bilkis Bano's Home As SC Quashes Gujarat Govt's Remission Order In Gangrape Case

Another victory for Bilkis Bano in the gang rape case comes after the Supreme Court reversed the Gujarat government’s decision to grant remission to 11 convicts involved in the crime during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Firecrackers were seen going off outside Bano’s residence in Gujarat.

Relatives of Bano joined in for the celebration and were seen bursting firecrackers.

Supreme Court bench also directed the Centre and the Gujarat government to submit the original records related to the convicts’ remission sentence by October 16, 2023.

SC HELD BANO’S PLEA MAINTAINABLE

The apex court held Bilkis Bano’s plea challenging the remission as ‘maintainable’, a bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said that the Gujarat government had no jurisdiction to pass remission orders in the case. The top court stated that the orders of the remission were ‘stereotyped’ as the convicts didn’t approach the court with clean hands.

The top court, while hearing a bunch of petitions against the Gujarat government order, said that the state wasn’t competent to release the convicts as the trial, in this case, took place in Maharashtra, therefore it has the right to take a call on remission of sentence of the 11 convicts.

“Rule of law is breached because the Gujarat government usurped power not vested in it and abused its power. On that ground also, the remission orders deserve to be quashed,” the Supreme Court bench said, adding, “We strike down the remission orders on the ground of usurpation of power by the Gujarat government.”

All the 11 convicts were granted remission on August 15, 2022 by the Gujarat government and released from jail on the basis of obsolete law.

Following the release, the victim Bilkis Bano filed a petition in the Supreme Court contesting the remission granted to them. Several other PILs, including one by CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali, independent journalist Revati Laul and former vice-chancellor of Lucknow University Roop Rekha Verma, also challenged the relief. TMC leader Mahua Moitra has also filed a PIL against the remission and their premature release.