Ahmedabad, India – Officials announced on Tuesday that eleven Hindu men who had been sentenced to life in prison for the gang rape of a pregnant Muslim woman during Hindu-Muslim riots in 2002 had been released on remission. The victim’s widower, attorneys, and politicians denounced the decision.
As a result of the state government’s approval of their request for sentence reductions, the 11 convicts in the case that became known as the Bilkis Bano case was released from jail in Gujarat’s Godhra town on Monday, According to India Media reports.
The district jail advisory council suggested the 11 be released after taking into account the time they had spent in custody and their excellent behavior, according to Panchmahals’ senior bureaucrat, who spoke to Reuters on the matter.
They were qualified for remission since they had served nearly 15 years in prison, according to Sujal Jayantibhai Mayatra.
After 14 years in prison, according to officials, Indian law permits prisoners to apply for remission.
A man was seen in the media feeding the prisoners candy outside the jail after paying one of them a respectful touch on the feet.
The victim’s husband expressed his disappointment to Reuters about how many family members were also killed in the riots.
Yakub Rasul remarked, “We lost our family and wanted to live in peace, but all of a sudden this happened. “Prior to their publication, neither the government nor the courts had provided us with any information. Only the media informed us of it.”
The revelation, according to opposition politicians and attorneys, goes against the government’s professed policy of elevating women in a nation known for violence against them.
