Why Indian court release men wey dey serve life sentence for rape and murder

Geeta Pandey

BBC News, Delhi

Bilkis Bano wey one Hindu mob bin gang-rape and also kill 14 members of her family during di 2002 anti-Muslim riots for western Indian state of Gujarat don dey make headlines again sake of say court don release di convicted men.

On Monday, 11 convicts wey dey serve life sentences for rape and murder in di case, waka komot from prison and pipo welcome dem like hero.

One video wey don go viral show di men outside di Godhra jail while relatives give dem sweets and touch dia feet to show respect.

Dis article contain details wey some readers fit find disturbing

Di Gujarat goment on Monday announce di decision to free di convicts as India celebrate dia 75th anniversary of independence.

Opposition parties, activists and several journalists don criticise di move by di state goment. Dem say e go against di rights of minority Muslims.

Di Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dey for power for Gujarat and nationally.

Attacks on di community don rise sharply since di BJP form di federal goment in 2014.

One senior official tok say one goment panel don approve di convicts application for remission as dem don spend 14 years for jail. Dem say oda factors like age and behaviour also help dia application.

Di men wey first dey convicted by one trial court for 2008 don spend 14 years for prison.

But many pipo don point out say di release dey against di guidelines wey di federal and di Gujarat state goment issue. Di guidelines from both goments say rape and murder convicts no fit get remission. Life terms for di kind crimes dey usually served until death for India.

Di biggest setback na for Bilkis Bano and her family.

“For several minutes late on Monday evening, Bilkis Bano no fit believe say di convicts don waka free - she first break into tears and she come dey silent,” her husband Yakub Rasool tell di Indian Express. “We don dey numbed, shocked and shaken,” im add.

Di newspaper tok say wen dem contact Bilkis Bano on Tuesday, she tok: “Abeg leave me alone… I don offer duas [prayers] for di soul of my daughter Saleha [di three-year-old dey among pipo wey dem kill]".

Di anger and sadness of di family dey easy to understand sake of di magnitude of di crime and di battle wey dem fight for justice.

Di attack on Bilkis Bano and her family na one of di most horrific crimes during di riots, wey start afta 60 Hindu pilgrims die inside fire for one passenger train for Godhra town.

Hindu blame Muslims say na dem start di fire and dem begin attack Muslim neighbourhoods. Ova three days, more dan 1,000 pipo die and most of dem na Muslims.

Narendra Modi wey be Gujarat chief minister den chop criticism say im no do enough to prevent di killings. Im don repeatedly deny wrongdoing and im neva apologise for di riots.

For 2013, one Supreme Court panel also tok say significant evidence no dey to prosecute Modi. But critics don continue to blame am for di riots wey happun under im watch.

Ova di years, di courts don convict dozens of pipo for dia involvement for di riots, but some high-profile wey chop accuse get bail or higher courts clear dem.

Dis include Maya Kodnani, one ex-minister and aide to Oga Modi wey one trial court bin call “ di kingpin of di riots”.

And now di men wey do bad for Bilkis Bano don dey free.

I meet Bilkis Bano for May 2017 for one safe house for Delhi, just days afta di Bombay High Court bin confirm di life sentences of di 11 convicts for di case.

As she fight back tears, she remember di horrors of di attack.

Di morning afta di train fire, Bilkis Bano wey bin 19 years den wit pregnancy of her second pikin bin visit her parents for one village called Randhikpur near Godhra wit her three-year-old daughter.

"I bin dey kitchen dey make lunch wen my aunt and her pikin run come inside. Dem say pipo dey burn dia homes and we gass leave immediately,” she tell me. “We leave wit just di clothes wey we wear, we no even get di time to put on our slippers.”

Bilkis Bano bin dey inside one group of 17 Muslims wey include her daughter, her mama, one pregnant cousin, her younger sibling, nieces and nephews, and two adult men.

Ova di next few days, dem travel from one village to village as dem dey seek shelter inside mosques or surviving on di kindness of Hindu neighbours.

On di morning of 3 March as dem dey go to one nearby village where dem believe say dem go dey safer, one group of men stop dem.

“Dem attack us wit swords and sticks. One of dem snatch my daughter from my lap and throw am for ground and bash her head for rock.”

Her attackers na neighbours for di village, men wey she don see almost daily wen she dey grow up. Dem tear her clothes and several of dem rape am and ignore her cry for mercy.

Dem also rape her cousin wey just deliver baby two days earlier wen dem bin dey on di run. Dem kill di cousin and di new baby.

Bilkis Bano survive sake of say she lose consciousness and her attacker leave as dem believe say she don die. Two boys - seven and four – na di only oda pipo wey survive di massacre.

Bilkis Bano fight for justice take long and na nightmare. E dey well documented say some police and state officials try to intimidate her, dem destroy evidence and di dead dey buried without post-mortems. Di doctors wey examine am say dem no rape am, and she receive death threats.

Dem make di first arrests for di case for 2004 afta India Supreme Court hand ova di case to federal investigators. Di top court also agree say di courts for Gujarat no fit deliver her justice and transfer ger case to Mumbai.

Her fight for justice dey disruptive for her family - Dem gass move home nearly one dozen times.

“We still no fit go home sake of say we dey fear. Police and di state administration don always help our attackers. Wen we dey for Gujarat, we still cover our faces, we no dey give our our address,” her husband tell me.

During di trial, calls dey for di death penalty for Bilkis Bano attackers, including from am.

But afta di high court for Mumbai sentence dem to life, she tell me say she “no dey interested in revenge” and she just want dem to understand wetin dem do”.

“I hope say dem go one day realise di enormity of dia crime, how dem kill small pikin dem and rape women.”

But she add say she want dem “to spend dia entire lives for jail”.

On Tuesday, Oga Rasool tell di Indian Express say im wife dey “distressed and melancholic"

"Di battle wey we fight for so many years don dey wrapped up for one moment,” im tok.

“We neva even get di time to process dis news and we know say we know say di convicts don already reach dia homes.”