Remission to 11 convicts real danger to Bilkis Bano, her family: IIM-B faculty to CJI

Solidarity letter in support of Bilkis Bano by Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIM-B) faculty and staff, addressed to the Chief Justice of India:

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We, the undersigned faculty and staff members of IIM Bangalore, in our personal capacity, stand in solidarity with Bilkis Bano and her fight for justice. The crimes committed by the eleven men granted remission were no ordinary crimes. They were accused and convicted of gang rape and murders of the most depraved and inhumane kind. The Supreme Court itself upheld their conviction in 2008.
Bilkis Bano, who survived to tell the tale, fought for justice for over seventeen years. This remission is not only a denial of justice but also presents a real and immediate danger to Bilkis Bano and her family. The sympathetic treatment these convicted men have received is shocking. What kind of a nation are we turning into if Bilkis Bano is left to defend herself while her violators are given a hero's welcome?
We are stunned and deeply anguished by this act of the Government of Gujarat. We look to our legal system and courts to deliver on the promise we as a nation "have solemnly resolved", "to secure to all its citizens: justice, liberty, equality and fraternity." The horrors that Bilkis Bano underwent in 2002 should not be experienced by any woman anywhere. This remission is bound to embolden perpetrators of such heinous crimes while simultaneously extinguishing the hope of millions of Indians who look up to the courts to deliver justice.
The Supreme Court must respond most urgently to Bilkis Bano's right to "to live without fear and in peace." As Blikis poignantly asks, "how can justice for any woman end like this?"
We appeal to you, Honourable Chief Justice, to enable us to continue to repose our trust in the Supreme Court.
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