On Thursday, the Supreme Court sought the Gujarat government’s answer to a petition seeking the release of 11 men convicted of gangraping Bilkis Bano during the Gujarat riots in 2002.
The court, led by Chief Justice N V Ramana, further directed the petitioners to include as parties those who had been given remission. The matter was also scheduled for hearing in two weeks, according to the bench.
As part of the Supreme Court’s Public Interest Litigation, Communist Party of India (Marxist) Politburo member Subhashini Ali, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, and one other petitioner are challenging the remission and consequent release of 11 convicts on Independence Day.
There has been a lot of political controversy surrounding the incident, and the special court judge who convicted the men has also raised questions regarding the decision of the Gujarat government.
On August 15, the convicts walked out of the Godhra sub-jail after the Gujarat government granted their parole under the state’s remission policy. They had spent over 15 years in prison.
