After the 11 convicts who gang-raped Bilkis Bano and killed her children during the Godhra riots in 2002 were freed as part of the Gujarat government’s remission policy, Bilkis Bano said, ‘The trauma of the past 20 years washed over me again.’ To ‘undo this harm’ and recover her ‘right to live without fear and in peace,’ she appealed with the state government.
‘Two days ago, on August 15, the trauma of the past 20 years washed over me again. When I heard that the 11 convicted men who devastated my family and my life, and took from me my 3-year-old daughter, had walked free,’ Bilkis Bano said. She claimed that the government’s decision had left her numb.
‘Today, I can only say this – how can justice for any woman end like this? I trusted the highest courts in our land. I trusted the system, and I was learning slowly to live with my trauma. The release of these convicts has taken from me my peace and shaken my faith in justice. My sorrow and my wavering faith is not for myself alone but for every woman who is struggling for justice in courts,’ Bano added.
She claimed that before making such a big and unjust decision, no one had asked about her safety and well-being. ‘I appeal to the Gujarat Government, please undo this harm. Give me back my right to live without fear and in peace. Please ensure that my family and I are kept safe,’ said Bano.
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