Protests have been underway all over India against the release of 11 convicts by the Gujarat government in the Bilkis Bano case. The south Indian states too witnessed several protest gatherings on Saturday, August 27, with demonstrations held in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kochi. Hundreds of people had gathered in Bengaluru’s Freedom Park to condemn the release of the 11 convicts on Saturday. They raised slogans in support of Bilkis Bano and against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for releasing the men convicted of gangrape and murder.
Students, activists, and other Bengaluru residents were seen raising placards and banners demanding the repeal of the convicts’ remission and an end to attacks on minority communities. In Telangana, the Telangana Women and Transgender Persons Organisations’ Joint Action Committee and Civil Society Organisation of Telangana held a round table conference over the issue at Makdoom Bhavan in Hyderabad’s Himayatnagar. The members of both the committees have appealed to the Union government and the Gujarat state government to cancel the convicts’ remission and to send them back to jail.
The social outfits had taken out a protest in Hyderabad a week ago, on August 20, demanding that all the 11 convicts be sent back to jail. The demonstration had taken place at Dharna Chowk in the city and was attended by activists from various women’s groups and members of civil society.
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Protests in Bengaluru
Several organisations in Kerala including Mahila Swaraj and Indian Human Rights Watch also organised protests. Members of these organisations were seen raising placards and posters in support of Bilkis Bano and condemning the release of the 11 convicts. Dr Shailaja Menon, a member of the Mahila Swaraj who was part of the protests in Kochi, said, “It (the release of the 11 men) is a gross act of injustice and we can’t keep silent about it."
Protest meeting in Hyderabad
"There are not just sentiments here, but strong convictions that we cannot be silenced about this active injustice. Bilkis Bano was a young girl and she saw her entire family and her three-year-old daughter massacred in front of her eyes. That was a violation of human rights. In no way, can you justify the release of these convicts. We hope the authorities will hear us and rectify this gross act of injustice," Menon said.
Protests in Kochi
Mysuru also witnessed similar protests on Saturday. In Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur district, a protest meeting was held at Tenali by the Human Rights Forum “against the fascist tendencies that support brutal killers and rapists.” Protests are scheduled for August 28 in Saidapet in Chennai by the All Women’s Federation.
At the protest in MYSORE #JusticeForBilkisBano #justasking pic.twitter.com/LqKLbYRDMQ
— Prakash Raj (@prakashraaj) August 27, 2022
Meeting in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh, demanding revocation of remission to the convicted in the Bilkis Bano Case. pic.twitter.com/OaBLJfpfYa
— Gutta Rohith (@gutta_rohith) August 27, 2022
A special CBI court in Mumbai had, on January 21, 2008, sentenced the 11 men to life imprisonment on charges of gang rape and murder of seven members of Bilkis Bano's family. Their conviction was later upheld by the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court. Bilkis Bano was 21 years old and five months pregnant when she was gangraped while fleeing the violence that broke out after the Godhra train burning in 2002. Among the seven members of her family who were killed was her three-year-old daughter.