Supreme Court verdict on Bilkis case puts in question Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration

By Aruna Sinha, Annie Raja*

The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) welcomes the landmark judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in the ‘Bilkis Bano case’, striking down the remission granted by State of Gujarat to the 11 convicts charged with multiple gang rapes and murders’. The remission was granted when India was celebrating seventy five years of its independence as ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” .

NFIW was one of the petitioners in the batch of Writ Petitions that were before the Hon’ble Supreme Court, inter alia seeking the quashing of the remission orders of the 11 convicts.

While cancelling the remission and asking the convicts to return to jail in two weeks, the Supreme Court has said that the Gujarat government acted beyond its powers and it was in tandem with the convicts. The SC also said that the Order for the right to grant remission has been obtained fraudulently.

The illegal grant of remission made all those laws that guarantee and safeguard the dignity and constitutional rights of women and children meaningless.

NFIW reiterates its solidarity with Bilkis Bano and salutes her for her relentless struggle for justice.

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*National Federation of Indian Women

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