The Supreme Court, on Wednesday, said that the plea by 2002 Gujarat riots gangrape victim Bilkis Bano challenging the pre-mature release of 11 convicts involved in crime against her including murdering seven members of her family will be listed, as advocate who mentioned the matter again for listing was told not to mention it again and again.

A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha was told by Bilkis Bano’s advocate Shobha Gupta that the  petition was listed yesterday but was not taken up as one of the judges on the bench (Justice Bela M Trivedi) recused herself.

Advertisement

“Writ petition will be listed. Don’t keep mentioning the same thing again and again. It will be listed,” Chief Justice Chandrachud said appearing irked over repeated mentioning of the matter.

After Justice Bela M Trivedi sitting along with Justice Ajay Rastogi had recused from hearing the matter on Tuesday (December 13), Justice Rastogi said the matter be posted before another bench.

Besides filing a petition against per-mature release of convicts, Bano has also filed a review petition seeking recall of top court’s earlier order by which it had asked the Gujarat government to consider the plea for remission of sentence of the one of the convicts. However, the Gujarat government took recourse to that judgment and released all the 11 convicts.

Bilkis Bano has sought the review of the May 2022 judgment which had said that plea for the remission of sentence be decided on the basis of 1992 remission rules.

The review petition too was listed for consideration yesterday before Justice Rastogi in his chamber.

As per procedures, review pleas against top court judgement is decided in chambers by circulation amongst the judges who were part of the bench that gave the judgement sought to be reviewed.

Challenging the grant of remission to 11 convicts, Bilkis has said that even though she is a victim of the crime, she had no clue about any such process of remission or premature release initiated.

Earlier, pleas seeking the revocation of the remission granted 11 convicts were filed by National Federation of Indian Women, whose General Secretary is Annie Raja, Member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Subhashini Ali, journalist Revati Laul, social activist and professor Roop Rekha Verma and TMC MP Mahua Moitra.

The Gujarat government, in its affidavit, had defended remission granted to convicts saying they completed 14 years sentence in prison and their “behaviour was found to be good.

Defending its decision to grant remission of sentence to 11 convicts, the Gujarat government, in its reply, said that it had secured “suitable orders” for grant of remission to the convicts from the Centre. The investigation in the case was carried out by the CBI.

The Gujarat government, in its reply affidavit filed in the Supreme Court on October 17, has said that the 11 convicts were in jail for 14 years and their “behaviour was found to be good”.

Stating that it had considered the case if 11 life-convicts as per its July 9, 1992 policy and with prior approval of the Central government and granted remission on August 10, 2022, the Gujarat government reply says that it is pertinent to note that the remission was not granted taking recourse to the circular governing grant of remission of sentence to prisoners as a part of celebration of 75 years of Indian independence.

The 11 convicts were released on August 15, 2022 pursuant to remission of sentence granted to them.

“State government considered all the opinions and decided to release 11 prisoners since they have completed 14 years and above in prisons and their behaviour was found to be good”, says the Gujarat government affidavit.