New India? Opposition slams PM Modi over release of Bilkis Bano case convicts

India

oi-Deepika S

New
Delhi,
Aug
16:
Opposition
parties
on
Tuesday
launched
a
scathing
attack
at
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
over
the
release
of
11
people
convicted
for
rape
and
murder
in
the
Bilkis
Bano
case
of
2002
Gujarat
riots
within
hours
of
his
praise
for
“Nari
Shakti” in
the
Independence
Day
speech
and
alleged
that
this
is
the
“real
face”
of
”New
India”
under
the
BJP.

They
said
the
remission
for
the
convicts,
serving
life
imprisonment
for
the
gang
rape
of
a
pregnant
Bilkis
Bano
and
murder
of
seven
of
her
family
members,
was
a
violation
of
the
Centre’s
guidelines
and
demanded
withdrawal
of
the
order.

The
convicts,
who
were
also
charged
with
killing
the
pregnant
Muslim
woman’s
three-year-old
daughter,
were
welcomed
with
sweets
and
garlands
outside
the
jail
on
Monday.

Congress
spokesperson
Pawan
Khera
said
Prime
Minister
Modi
should
tell
the
country
if
he
himself
believed
in
his
words
when
he
spoke
about
the
safety,
respect
and
empowerment
of
women.

“The
BJP
government
in
Gujarat
released
11
convicts
in
the
Bilkis
Bano
gang
rape
case.
This
decision
brings
out
the
BJP
government’s
mindset,”
he
told
reporters.

He
also
referred
to
the
Kathua
and
Unnao
cases
and
said
it
embarrasses
everyone
in
politics
when
office-bearers
and
supporters
of
a
national
political
party
are
seen
taking
out
a
rally
in
favour
of
rapists
on
the
streets.

“Yesterday,
from
the
ramparts
of
the
Red
Fort,
the
prime
minister
spoke
big
things
about
women’s
safety,
women’s
power,
women’s
respect.
A
few
hours
later
the
Gujarat
government
released
those
behind
the
rape.
We
also
saw
that
the
convicts
in
the
rape
who
were
released
are
being
honoured.
Is
this
the
Amrit
Mahotsav,”
Khera
said.

“The
Congress
asks
the
prime
minister
to
tell
the
country
that
what
he
said
from
the
ramparts
of
the
Red
Fort
were
merely
words,
as
he
himself
did
not
believe
in
his
words.
“Who
is
the
real
Narendra
Modi?
The
one
who
serves
falsehood
from
the
ramparts
of
the
Red
Fort
or
the
one
who
gets
his
Gujarat
government
to
release
those
behind
rape.
This
Congress
party
and
the
country
want
to
know,”
the
Congress
leader
asked.

In
a
tweet,
the
CPI(M)
also
strongly
condemned
the
release
of
the
convicts,
saying
“this
is
the
real
face
of
New
India
—
convicted
killers
and
rapists
released”
and
activist
Teesta
Setalvad
“who
fought
for
justice
was
jailed”.

Trinamool
Congress
spokesperson
Saket
Gokhale
said
Bilkis
Bano
was
“raped
in
the
2002
Gujarat
pogrom
and
her
entire
family
was
murdered
and
buried
in
a
mass
grave”.

“Gujarat
govt
has
now
released
all
11
monsters
who
were
convicted
of
this
heinous
crime.
Where’s
the
outrage
by
people
&
the
Noida
media?
Not
even
a
whimper,”
he
tweeted.

All
India
Majlis-e-Ittehadul
Muslimeen
(AIMIM)
chief
Asaduddin
Owaisi
also
targeted
Prime
Minister
Modi
over
their
release.
In
his
Independence
Day
speech,
Modi
had
asked
Indians
to
take
a
pledge
not
to
do
anything
that
lowers
the
dignity
of
women,
Owaisi
said.
“He
said
something
about
supporting
‘Nari
Shakti’.

Gujarat
BJP
govt
released
criminals
convicted
of
gang
rape
on
the
same
day.
The
message
is
clear,”
Owaisi
tweeted.
Bahujan
Samaj
Party
MP
Danish
Ali
also
referred
to
the
prime
minister’s
remarks
and
said
the
release
of
11
convicts
has
exposed
the
huge
gap
between
words
and
the
spirit
of
justice.

“The
world
is
watching
but
who
cares
in
‘New
India’?”
he
tweeted.
CPI(M)
politburo
member
Brinda
Karat
said
that
the
release
of
the
convicts
was
a
blatant
violation
of
the
Centre’s
guideline
excluding
those
convicted
of
rape,
gang
rape
and
murder
from
benefits
of
remission
from
a
full
life
term
imprisonment.

In
June
this
year,
proposing
a
special
release
policy
for
convicted
prisoners
to
mark
‘Azadi
Ka
Amrit
Mahotsav’
(75
years
of
Independence),
the
Centre
issued
guidelines
to
states.
Rape
convicts
are
listed
among
those
who
are
not
to
be
granted
release
under
this
policy.

She
said
the
Gujarat
government’s
release
order
is
shocking,
shameful
and
condemnable.

“Of
what
value
is
the
prime
minister’s
statements
for
women’s
dignity
from
the
ramparts
of
the
Red
Fort
when
his
own
party-led
government
shows
such
criminal
partisanship
towards
rapists
and
murderers.
The
order
must
be
immediately
rescinded,”
she
said.

“The
murder
of
a
Dalit
child
for
drinking
water
from
an
‘upper
caste’ pot
in
an
RSS-run
school
in
Rajasthan
and
the
release
of
eleven
rape
and
murder
convicts
in
Gujarat
in
the
Bilkis
Bano
case
tell
us
that
something
is
truly
rotten
in
the
state
of
India
after
75
years
of
freedom!,”
said
CPI
(ML)
general
secretary
Dipankar
Bhattacharya.

A
special
Central
Bureau
of
Investigation
(CBI)
court
in
Mumbai
on
January
21,
2008,
sentenced
the
11
accused
to
life
imprisonment
on
charges
of
gang
rape
and
murder
in
the
Bilkis
Bano
case
of
the
2002
Gujarat
riots.

Their
conviction
was
later
upheld
by
the
Bombay
High
Court.
PM
Modi,
who
was
at
that
time
the
chief
minister
of
Gujarat,
has
been
persistently
attacked
by
the
Opposition
over
the
riots
which
had
left
790
Muslims
and
254
Hindus
dead
while
223
more
people
were
reported
missing
and
another
2,500
were
injured.
The
riots
had
erupted
after
the
Godhra
train
burning
incident
in
which
59
‘karsevaks’ were
killed.