On Monday, The Gujarat government informed the supreme court that it has acted under its order and paid 50 Lakh Rupees and also provided a job to BilkisBano, who was gang-raped during the riots in the state.
An application by Bano was moved in the top court expressing her dissatisfaction with the compliance of the order in connection with the provision of accommodation and job offer provided by the state government.
Appearing for the state government, Solicitor Tushar Mehta, contended before a bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde and Justices V. Ramasubramanian and A.S. Bopanna that this petition is misconceived.
Through advocate Shobha Gupta, BilkisBano in the application citied that the state government has not properly complied with the top court order. After a brief hearing in the matter, the bench told that the court would hear the matter after one week.
The government has only given 50 square meters of land, which is recorded as garden area zone and also that she has been offered a job of a peon in the irrigation department on a contract basis, Bano said citing issues with the accommodation.
The Supreme court had ordered the Gujarat government to pay Rs.50 lakh to BilkisBano the Gujarat communal riots victim, within two weeks on September 30.
The state government was also ordered by the top court to give her accommodation and job, as it turned down a plea by the Gujarat government to reconsider its April 2019 order which made the same recommendations.
On March 3, 2002, BilkisBano’s seven family members were also killed at the Randhikpur village near Ahmedabad. She was pregnant when she was gang-raped by the mob.
The top court was informed by the Gujarat Government that the three guilty officials, who tried to tamped with the evidence in the Bilkis gang-rape case has been stripped of entire pension benefits and an IPS officer was demoted by two ranks.
The life imprisonment of 11 people accused in the BilkisBano gang-rape case was upheld by the Bombay High Court.
BilkisBano and her family were one of the many victims of the 2002-pot Godhra riots in Gujarat, the case stood out for sheer brutality.
Four women, including Bilkis and her mother, were brutally assaulted and were raped. Out of the 17-member group of Muslims from Radhikpur village, six were missing, eight were found dead. Only Bilkis, a three-year-old and a man survived the attack.
