Bilkis Bano Case: SC Rejects Interim Bail Request for Convicts
On Friday, the Supreme Court dismissed requests from two men convicted in the 2002 Gujarat riots gang rape case involving Bilkis Bano, refusing to consider their pleas [Radheshyam Bhagwandas Shah @ Lala Vakil v. Union of India and anr].
Radheshyam Bhagwandas and Rajubhai Babulal Soni, the two convicts, sought interim bail from the Court pending a new decision on their remission applications (requests for early release from prison).
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and PV Sanjay Kumar clearly stated that no such relief would be granted.
"What is this plea? How is it even maintainable? Absolutely misconceived. How can we sit over an appeal under (Article) 32?" the Court questioned.
The convicts ultimately withdrew their petition. Notably, on January 8 this year, the Supreme Court revoked the Gujarat government's remission granted to all convicts in the Bilkis Bano case.
In the January 8 ruling, the Court determined that the remission policy applicable to the eleven convicts in the Bilkis Bano case was the policy of Maharashtra (where the trial occurred) and not Gujarat.
Thus, the Court ruled that Gujarat had no authority to apply its remission policy to these convicts and ordered their re-imprisonment.
The Court also strongly criticized the Gujarat government, stating that it had “acted in tandem and was complicit with the accused" by allowing their early release.
Review petitions challenging this verdict, filed by both the Gujarat government and the convicts, are currently pending before the Supreme Court.
Advocate Rishi Malhotra represented the convicts. After the Court indicated its reluctance to entertain the plea, the petitions were withdrawn.
