New Delhi: Eleven men found guilty of gang-raping Bilkis Bano during the Gujarat riots in 2002 were released from prison on Monday, August 15, the day the nation celebrated its 75th anniversary of Independence.
The eleven inmates who had received life sentences for gang rape and murder were released when the state administration granted their request for remission. If their release shocked many people, their family’s subsequent celebration of them made the fury grow.
“Two days ago, on 15 August, the trauma of the past 20 years washed all over me again when I heard that the 11 convicted men, who devastated my family and my life and took away my 3-year-old daughter from me, were let free,” Bano said in her statement to the media.
Bano’s Tale Of Woe And Her Fight For Justice
Attempting to leave their homes on February 28, 2002, Bilkis Bano and her family members were attacked by a crowd at Radhikpur village, not far from Ahmedabad, as they attempted to flee the danger of communal violence. Around 14 individuals were killed by the crowd, including Bilkis’ three-year-old daughter, whose head was crushed by a rock.
Though Bilkis was five months pregnant at the time, she suffered a brutal assault and gang rape. Her attackers abandoned her bleeding and naked, believing that she had died. But she still had life and the spirit to fight for justice left in her. She filed a complaint with the local police but her allegation was denied by the local police because of contradictions in her testimony.
Yet, Bilkis persisted in her fight and she contacted the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), who in turn sent the matter to the Supreme Court, which requested that the CBI look into the matter. The CBI detained several suspects in connection with the crimes.
A trial court found 13 of the individuals the CBI had accused of rape and murder guilty, and it gave 11 of them life sentences. The CBI appealed the decision, pushing for a longer sentence. Its request was denied. While a different court maintained the convictions, it did not sentence the rapists and killers with the death penalty.
Bano’s Plight Persists
“Today, I can say only this- how can justice for any woman end like this? I trusted the highest courts in our land. I trusted the system, and I was learning slowly to live with my trauma,” said Bilkis Bano in her media statement.
“The release of these convicts has taken from me my peace and shaken my faith in justice. My sorrow and my wavering faith are not for myself alone but for every woman who is struggling for justice in courts,” Bano added as the government of Gujarat chose to reduce the sentences of the convicts and release them. The state government determined that the prisoners had completed enough sentences, one of them had a sick relative, and they earned time off for good conduct.
To commemorate the “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” or the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence, the Union Home Ministry wrote to all the states on June 10 and recommended the release of inmates in specific categories, the ministry excluded the lifers and rape convicts from the offer.
The Gujarat administration claimed that the 11 convicts’ releases had been given in accordance with the state’s 1992 remission policy.
“I appeal to the Gujrat government, please undo this harm. Give me back my right to live without fear and in peace. Please ensure that my family and I are kept safe,” said Bano.
