Gujarat: ‘Where is the appliance of thoughts?’ asks SC to state’s counter affidavit in Bilkis Bano case

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: “A series of judgments were cited, where is the factual scenario, where is the application of mind?”, the Supreme Court quizzed in response to the counter affidavit filed by the State of Gujarat within the Bilkis Bano case.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday posted the PILs filed by three girls’s rights activists together with Subhashini Ali difficult the discharge of the 11 convicts within the Bilkis Bano case for November 29, 2022. 

Gujarat authorities’s 1992 coverage didn’t prohibit the remission of rape, gang rape or homicide convicts. 

Granting time to the petitioners to answer the affidavit filed by the Gujarat authorities, a bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and CT Ravikumar of their order mentioned, “Counter affidavit has been filed by State. Any further rejoinder affidavit if to be filed, be filed within the next date of hearing. Let counter affidavits be made available to all the lawyers. List the matters on November 29, 2022.” 

Questioning the maintainability of the petitioners, the Gujarat authorities has informed SC yesterday that third-party strangers had been precluded from questioning a remission order handed by the State authorities which is strictly in accordance with legislation. It was additionally said that the state had thought-about the proposal below 1992 coverage & not granted it below round governing the grant of remission to prisoners as a part of celebration of “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”. Further, the state had added the opinions of the Inspector General of Prisons, Gujarat State, Jail Superintendents, Jail Advisory Committee, District Magistrate, Police Superintendent, CBI, Special Crime Branch, Mumbai and Hon. Sessions Court, Mumbai (CBI) had been thought-about and the state determined to launch the 11 convicts on completion of their 14 years sentence as their “behavior was found to be good” and after approval from the central authorities,” the affidavit additional mentioned. 

“All the convict prisoners have accomplished 14+ years within the jail below life imprisonment and opinions of the involved authorities have been obtained as per the coverage of 09.07.1992 and submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India vide letter dated 28/06/2022 and sought the approval/appropriate orders of the Government of India. The Government of India conveyed the concurrence/approval of the Central Government below Section 435 of the CrPC for untimely launch of 11 prisoners vide letter dated 11.07.2022,” mentioned the state authorities.

In its affidavit filed in September 2022, the convict Radhey Shyam Bhagwandas Shah had additionally questioned the locus of the petitioners. Justifying the discharge, the convict had additionally mentioned that SC in its order dated May 13, 2022 had mentioned that Gujarat authorities’s coverage could be relevant for his or her remission and had thus directed the State of Gujarat to think about the appliance for untimely launch by way of the coverage dated July 9, 1992. 

The PIL reportedly mentioned the convicts shouldn’t be launched as it’s a case that includes gang rape and homicide. 

It could also be recalled {that a} five-month pregnant Bano was gang-raped and her three-year-old daughter Saleha was amongst 14 individuals killed by a mob in Dahod on March 3, 2002, in communal riots that consumed Gujarat following the loss of life of 59 passengers, primarily ‘Kar Sevaks’, when the Sabarmati Express was set on fireplace.

NEW DELHI: “A series of judgments were cited, where is the factual scenario, where is the application of mind?”, the Supreme Court quizzed in response to the counter affidavit filed by the State of Gujarat within the Bilkis Bano case.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday posted the PILs filed by three girls’s rights activists together with Subhashini Ali difficult the discharge of the 11 convicts within the Bilkis Bano case for November 29, 2022. 

Gujarat authorities’s 1992 coverage didn’t prohibit the remission of rape, gang rape or homicide convicts. 

Granting time to the petitioners to answer the affidavit filed by the Gujarat authorities, a bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and CT Ravikumar of their order mentioned, “Counter affidavit has been filed by State. Any further rejoinder affidavit if to be filed, be filed within the next date of hearing. Let counter affidavits be made available to all the lawyers. List the matters on November 29, 2022.” 

Questioning the maintainability of the petitioners, the Gujarat authorities has informed SC yesterday that third-party strangers had been precluded from questioning a remission order handed by the State authorities which is strictly in accordance with legislation. It was additionally said that the state had thought-about the proposal below 1992 coverage & not granted it below round governing the grant of remission to prisoners as a part of celebration of “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”. Further, the state had added the opinions of the Inspector General of Prisons, Gujarat State, Jail Superintendents, Jail Advisory Committee, District Magistrate, Police Superintendent, CBI, Special Crime Branch, Mumbai and Hon. Sessions Court, Mumbai (CBI) had been thought-about and the state determined to launch the 11 convicts on completion of their 14 years sentence as their “behavior was found to be good” and after approval from the central authorities,” the affidavit additional mentioned. 

“All the convict prisoners have accomplished 14+ years within the jail below life imprisonment and opinions of the involved authorities have been obtained as per the coverage of 09.07.1992 and submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India vide letter dated 28/06/2022 and sought the approval/appropriate orders of the Government of India. The Government of India conveyed the concurrence/approval of the Central Government below Section 435 of the CrPC for untimely launch of 11 prisoners vide letter dated 11.07.2022,” mentioned the state authorities.

In its affidavit filed in September 2022, the convict Radhey Shyam Bhagwandas Shah had additionally questioned the locus of the petitioners. Justifying the discharge, the convict had additionally mentioned that SC in its order dated May 13, 2022 had mentioned that Gujarat authorities’s coverage could be relevant for his or her remission and had thus directed the State of Gujarat to think about the appliance for untimely launch by way of the coverage dated July 9, 1992. 

The PIL reportedly mentioned the convicts shouldn’t be launched as it’s a case that includes gang rape and homicide. 

It could also be recalled {that a} five-month pregnant Bano was gang-raped and her three-year-old daughter Saleha was amongst 14 individuals killed by a mob in Dahod on March 3, 2002, in communal riots that consumed Gujarat following the loss of life of 59 passengers, primarily ‘Kar Sevaks’, when the Sabarmati Express was set on fireplace.