Several rights groups in Bengaluru’s Freedom Park on Monday protested against the release of 11 convicts sentenced to life for gang rape and murder in the Bilkis Bano case and the brutal killing of a 9-year-old Dalit student in Rajasthan.
Rights groups including All India Students Association (AISA) Collective, Karnataka Janashakthi, Naveddu Nillladidare, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Students Christian Movement of India (SCMI), Stree Jagruti Samithi and several other prominent individuals condemned the release of the convicts.
The protest took place seeking justice for Bilkis Bano, who was gang raped during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Bano was a 19-year-old and was five months pregnant at the time. The rioters murdered 14 members of her family, including her three-year-old daughter.
On Monday, the Gujarat government approved the application of the 11 convicts who were sentenced to life for gang rape and mass murder, under its remission policy. The convicts were released from a Godhra jail and welcomed with sweets and garlands.
“The nation appears to have lost its humanity, Activist Vinay told The Cognate. “We’ve seen what happened with the Gujarat government’s decision on the Bilkis Bano’s case, where 11 convicts, whose conviction had been upheld by the higher courts have been released based on a remission. What is most shocking is not what the government of Gujarat did, we anyway know that it doesn’t have any humanity or follow any constitutional principles. But even across the country, voices have been lower. So we felt that it was time to hit the streets, we all came out on the streets to Nirbhaya when it happened and it was much required.”
“I think the courts have failed us completely in this case,” he added.
“This is an atrocious act, worse than Nirbhaya. In Nirbhaya, they were hanged. Here, one pregnant woman was raped by a series of 20 fellows and they killed her daughter aged about three years. All her 14 family members were killed and burnt alive,” Advocate Balan of Karnataka high court told The Cognate.
He added that it was the same court which had given a clean chit to Modi. “He was the Chief Minister who failed to protect but the person who raised their voice is now in jail – ‘Teesta’.”
“Targeting M”, says Advocate Balan, “One M is Marxist, communist, second M Christian missionaries, third is mecalist, fourth is materialist, Ambedkar is a materialist and fifth M is Muslims. All these classes should come together and fight.”
Speaking to The Cognate, Student Christian movement of India’s lead (SCMI) Reverand Emanuel said, “Rape is a mechanism used to completely dehumanize individuals, communities and their integrity. What has happened to Banu is already pathetic. And releasing the perpetrators connotes that the nationalism that the country and government are vehemently embracing and propagating is grounded on the idea of freeing perpetrators. Thereby, it is demonic. It is one of the most dehumanizing gestures by the judicial system to the society.”
During the protest, placards reading, “Orange is the new black”, “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav for 11 rapists?” and others were held.
“Actually it is interesting to see where we stand given the British left India. We are here to come up with the freedom struggle and to understand whether the India that was envisioned by the martyrs of Freedom struggle like Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Shaheed Ashfaqullah Khan, Shaheed Chandrasekhar Azad is being practised in reality in current India. What we see right now is a communal and castist setup that is marginalizing the already marginalized sections of our country. Be it the Dalit, Adivasis, religious minorities or women. We’re seeing layers of that happening all over the country, layers of oppression we’re experiencing every day. We’re all gathered here today to speak up against it and say it right in the face of this fascist Sangh Parivar Sarkar that we won’t bow down. Won’t just stay silent,” Aratrika of AISA said.
Besides seeking justice for Bano, the protest was also held to mourn the death of 9-year-old Indra Meghwal who was beaten for allegedly touching a drinking water pot on July 20 in Rajasthan.
The family members have claimed that the boy was thrashed as he was a Dalit while the teacher belonged to the upper caste.
“Almost 100 years after the Maha Satyagraha, Dalits are still not being allowed to touch water. A nine-year-old child is beaten by his own teacher because he wanted water. So what can we say about this? We are here to mourn the death of humanity. We are here to say let us join hands to restore humanity in this country. Let us listen to law and justice in this country,” Vinay said.
Another Firdouse Khan told The Cognate, “Injustice is happening to Bilkis Bano today and so much injustice has been done to a woman who has undergone so much trouble along with her children and parents. In the name of the hypocrisy of Amrit Mahotsav and things like that they have released these people saying that they are Brahmins, very good people, and are Charith people.”
“This protest is basically to raise our voice against that. The 11 rapists have been released incorrectly, they must get the punishment that they deserve and Bilkis should get the justice that she deserves,” Firdouse added.
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Rabia Shireen is a Staff Reporter at The Cognate.
