PUBLISHED ON: January 8, 2024 | Duration: 3 min, 00 sec
The Supreme Court today ruled that 11 men convicted of raping Bilkis Bano and killing her family during the 2002 Gujarat riots but released early for "good behaviour" must return to jail. The convicts have to surrender within two weeks, the court said, cancelling Gujarat's decision to release them.
The Gujarat government was not competent to release the men in 2022, the Supreme Court said in its landmark order on a decision that triggered nationwide condemnation.
"The exemption order lacks competence," the Supreme Court said, berating the Gujarat government for passing such an order "without application of mind". Criminals can be released only by the state where they are tried, which is Maharashtra in this case.
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