The Supreme Court has overturned the Gujarat government’s decision to grant remission to 11 convicts involved in the heinous gangrape of Bilkis Bano and the brutal murder of seven of her family members during the 2002 riots in the state. The apex court deemed the remission orders as “stereotyped” and issued without due consideration.
A bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan directed the convicts to surrender before jail authorities within two weeks. The court emphasized that the Gujarat government was not the appropriate authority to pass the remission order, clarifying that the state where the offenders were tried and sentenced, in this case, Maharashtra, holds the competence to decide remission pleas.
The judgment, spanning over 100 pages, stated, “The 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.”
Highlighting the misuse of power, the court declared its earlier order from May 13, 2022, directing the Gujarat government to consider the remission plea, as a ‘nullity.’ The bench accused the government of obtaining the order through “playing fraud on the court” and suppressing material facts, terming it a violation of the rule of law.
“We strike down the remission orders on the ground of usurpation of power by the Gujarat government,” the bench asserted.
The apex court had reserved its verdict on October 12 after an extensive 11-day hearing on petitions, including one filed by Bilkis Bano herself. The court had directed the submission of original records related to the remission by October 16.
In September of the previous year, the court had questioned whether convicts have a fundamental right to seek remission. It stressed that state governments should not selectively grant remission and that the opportunity for reform and reintegration should extend to every prisoner.
Several PILs, including those by CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali, journalist Revati Laul, and former vice-chancellor of Lucknow University Roop Rekha Verma, had challenged the relief. TMC leader Mahua Moitra also filed a PIL against the remission and premature release of the convicts.
Bilkis Bano, who was 21 years old and five months pregnant at the time of the crime, had suffered rape during the 2002 communal riots. Her three-year-old daughter was among the seven family members killed in the violence. The 11 convicts were granted remission by the Gujarat government and released on August 15, 2022.