A convict in the Bilkis Bano gang rape case, released by the Gujarat government opposes plea in Supreme Court against remission

A convict in the Bilkis Bano gang rape case, recently released by the Gujarat government, has opposed remission of his life sentence before the Supreme Court. Convict Radheysham Bhagwandas Shah told the Top Court that the remission was as per the Top Court's order dated May 13, 2022.

Shah further questioned the petitioners' locus, stating that it is a settled position that a third party cannot file a petition opposing such remission.

Recently, the Gujarat government granted remission to 11 convicts who had gang-raped Bilkis Bano and murdered her family members during the 2002 Godhra riots.

The petition before the Supreme Court was filed by CPI(M) leader Subhasini Ali, Revati Laul, independent journalist and filmmaker, and former philosophy professor and activist Roop Rekha Varma.

The Supreme Court sought a response from the Gujarat government and the 11 convicts to the plea.

In his response, Shah stated that none of the petitioners is related to the case and only happens to be a third-party stranger to the said case. It would not only unsettle the settled position of law if such third-party petitions were granted by the Supreme Court but would also open the floodgates and invite all public members to join any criminal case before any court of law, the convict argues.

BACKGROUND

During the 2002 riots, Bano was gang-raped. Her three-year-old daughter was among twelve people killed by a mob in Limkheda taluka of Dahod district in Gujarat. The SC ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case after Bano approached National Human Rights Commission.

In 2004, the SC transferred the trial from Godhra in Gujarat to Maharashtra after Bano complained of death threats by the accused.

A Special CBI Court in 2008 convicted thirteen accused, out of which eleven were sentenced to life imprisonment on the charge of gang rape and murder. The Bombay High Court upheld the conviction order.
The Supreme Court in 2019 also directed the Gujarat Government to provide ₹50 lakh compensation, a government job, and accommodation to Bano.