The Supreme Court on Monday fixed the final hearing of pleas against the remission granted to convicts in the Bilkis Bano case on August 7.
The hearing is related to the clutch of petitions filed in the Apex Court against the remission of sentences granted to 11 men by the Gujarat government who were serving life sentences for the gang rape of Bilkis Bano and murder of her family member during the 2002 Gujarat Riots.
Last year, the Gujarat government released the 11 men amid widespread criticism. A number of petitions were filed against the release in the Supreme Court.
What's the case about?
In 2002, over 1,000 persons were killed in Gujarat Riots, most of whom were Muslims.
On March 3, 21-year-old Bilkis Bano was fleeing with her toddler daughter and 15 others when they took shelter in a field. A mob of 20-30 people armed with sickles, swords, and sticks attacked them. Bano was gangraped while seven of her family members were killed.
Following outcry over the incident, the Supreme Court ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the incident.
In 2004, the trial of the accused began at Ahmedabad, which was later shifted to Mumbai.
In 2008, a Special CBI Court sentenced the 11 accused to life imprisonment on the charges of conspiring to rape a pregnant woman, murder, and unlawful assembly. The court acquitted seven other accused for lack of evidence. One of the accused had died during the trial.
In 2018, the Bombay High Court upheld the conviction.
What did the Supreme Court say?
The Supreme Court bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan noted that the pleadings have been completed and notices served on all the convicts.
"We hold that pleadings in the matter are complete and all the respondents have been served notices in all the cases though newspaper publications or directly. We list the matter for final hearing on August 7. All parties should file short written submissions, synopsis and list of dates," the bench said, as per PTI.
The bench said since the matter was listed for directions, it is fixing August 7 as the date for the final hearing and the parties, who wish to file their replies, written submissions, synopsis, and list of dates, are at liberty to do so, reported PTI.
"Your written submissions should focus on some main issues and arguments," the bench told the counsel for the petitioners and granted them three weeks to file their replies, reported PTI, adding that the SC bench also allowed the convicts to file their counter affidavits on the petitions challenging the remission.
The progress of the case so far in SC
After the Gujarat government released all the men convicted for gang rape of Bano and murder of her family members, several petitions were filed in the matter in the Supreme Court, such as by CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali, independent journalist Revati Laul, former vice-chancellor of Lucknow University Roop Rekha Verma, and Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra.
Taking up the clutch of petitions, the SC had sought the responses of the Centre and Gujarat government and others.
On May 9, the Supreme Court had directed the publication of notices in local newspapers, including in Gujarati and English, against the convicts who could not be served notices, including the one whose house was found by the local police to be locked and his phone switched off, reported PTI.
The May 9 order came after the Apex Court on May 2 deferred the hearing after counsel for some convicts said they had not been served notices.
The Gujarat government had raised preliminary objections with regard to the petitions filed in the matter other than the one by Bano, saying it will have wide ramifications as every now and then third parties will approach courts in criminal cases, reported PTI.
The top court had on April 18 questioned the Gujarat government over the remission granted to the 11 convicts, saying the gravity of the offence should have been considered before showing leniency, and wondered if there was any application of mind, reported PTI, adding that the SC asked for reasons for the premature release of the convicts, the top court had also questioned frequent parole granted to them during their incarceration.
"It (remission) is a kind of grace, which should be proportional to the crime," said SC at the time.
Terming Bano's gang rape and the murder of her family members a "horrendous" act, the Supreme Court had on March 27 asked the Gujarat government whether uniform standards, as followed in other murder cases, were applied while granting remission to the convicts, reported PTI, adding that the SC had sought the responses of the Centre, the Gujarat government and others.
