Release of convicts has shaken my faith in justice: Bilkis Bano
Ahmedabad (PTI): Bilkis Bano, a survivor of the 2002 post-Godhra riots in Gujarat, has said the premature release of all the 11 convicts serving life sentence in a case related to her and seven family members, has shaken her faith in justice and left her numb.
She has appealed to the Gujarat government to "undo this harm" and give back her right to "live without fear and in peace."
The 11 convicts, sentenced to life imprisonment in the 2002 case of Bilkis Bano's gang rape and murder of her seven family members during the riots, walked out of the Godhra sub-jail on Monday after the BJP government in Gujarat allowed their release under its remission policy.
Criticising the move, Bilkis Bano on Wednesday said nobody enquired about her safety and well-being before taking "such a big and unjust decision."
"On August 15, 2022, the trauma of the past 20 years washed over me again when I heard that the 11 convicted men who devastated my family and my life and took from me my three-year-old daughter had walked free," she said in a statement released by her lawyer Sobha.
"I was bereft of words. I am still numb," said the survivor of the gang rape and murder of her family members in one of the worst riots triggered by the Godhra train burning incident.
Bilkis Bano said all she can say is "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. The release of these convicts has taken from me my peace and shaken my faith in justice," she said.
"My sorrow and my wavering faith is not for myself alone but for every woman who is struggling for justice in courts," she said.
The survivor asked the state government to ensure her safety and of her family members post the release of the convicts.
"I appeal to the Gujarat Government, please undo this harm. Give me back my right to live without fear and in peace. Please ensure my family and I are kept safe," she added.
The Gujarat government had released all the 11 convicts after the Supreme Court directed it to consider their plea for relief under the 1992 remission policy.
A special CBI court in Mumbai had on January 21, 2008 sentenced to life imprisonment the 11 accused in the case for murder and gang rape. Their conviction was later upheld by the Bombay High Court.
These convicts served more than 15 years in prison, after which one of them had approached the Supreme Court with a plea for his premature release.
The apex court had directed the Gujarat government to look into the issue of remission of his sentence as per its 1992 policy on the basis of the date of his conviction.
Thereafter, the government formed a committee and issued an order allowing premature release of all the convicts from jail.
On March 3, 2002, Bilkis Bano's family was attacked by a mob at Randhikpur village in Limkheda taluka of Dahod district.
Bilkis Bano, who was five months pregnant at the time, was gang raped and seven members of her family were killed by rioters.
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Rahul Gandhi joins Haryana Congress leader's 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram
Gurugram (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday joined the 'Sadbhav Yatra' of Haryana Congress leader Brijendra Singh here.
Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, reached Gurugram in the evening and joined the yatra. He also walked some distance with Brijendra, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh and other leaders.
Huge crowds had turned up for the occasion.
Later, Gandhi proceeded to the venue where he addressed a public gathering.
Leader of Opposition in Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda and other Congress leaders, including Randeep Singh Surjewala, B K Hariprasad, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh, were also present.
Brijendra Singh had on Thursday said it is a matter of joy for them that Gandhi was joining the 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram-Badshahpur, "thereby strengthening the Indian National Congress' campaign for brotherhood and harmony".
The 'Sadbhav Yatra' began from Danoda village at Narwana in Jind on October 5, 2025, and has covered 85 of the 90 assembly segments in the state.
The foot march was started by Brijendra Singh, son of Congress veteran Birender Singh, to highlight several national and regional issues.
State Congress chief Rao Narender Singh had asked all party leaders to take part in Friday's event.
Days before his yatra began in October, Brijendra Singh, who narrowly lost the 2024 assembly polls from Jind's Uchana Kalan, accused the ruling BJP of playing "divisive politics" and said that "sadbhav" (harmony) has come under stress in the last decade.
Brijendra Singh was a sitting MP from Hisar for the BJP when he resigned ahead of the 2024 general election and switched over to the Congress. He also alleged that the saffron party creates a wedge in society to achieve its political purpose.
The 'padyatra' has so far covered 85 assembly constituencies in Haryana, traversing more than 2,700 kilometres.
Addressing the public gathering, Brijendra Singh said the yatra is inspired by Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, where he took the party's vision and values directly to the people of the country.
Singh said the yatra has highlighted issues like "Vote Chori" (vote theft), unemployment, poor law and order situation, agrarian distress, and issues related to government employees, labourers and traders.
"Sadbhav (harmony) and bhaichara (brotherhood), which the BJP is attempting to weaken, are the messages of this yatra," he said, adding that its slogan is "Congress ka haath bhaichara ka saath".
"This yatra is a natural extension of the Bharat Jodo Yatra," Brijendra Singh said.
