Bilki Bano is an Indian rape survivor. He was brutally raped by a mob during the 2002 Gujarat riots.
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Wiki/Biography
Bilki Yakub Rasool was born in 1981 (age 41; as of 2022) in Radikpur village, Dahod district, Gujarat. Later, he moved to Devgad Baria, Gujarat.
Physical appearance
Hair color: black
Eye Color: Black
family
Bilkis belongs to a Muslim family.
parents and siblings
His father, Abdul Ghachi, had a business selling milk. His mother and sisters were brutally killed during the 2002 Gujarat riots.
husband and children
Bilkis is married to a man named Yakub Rasul. The couple has three daughters. Their first daughter named Saleha was killed in the Gujarat riots (2002). Their third daughter was named Saleha in her memory.
Mrs. Bilki with her husband and daughters
Mrs. Bilki with her husband and second daughter
2002 Godhra Riots Rape Victim
On the morning of February 27, 2002, a Sabarmati Express coach was attacked by a Muslim mob. The train was going from Ayodhya to Godhra and was being carried by Hindus. The mob set the train on fire and about 59 Hindus were burnt in the train.
Godhra train burning incident
As soon as the news spread that the attackers were Muslims, the Hindus of Gujarat went into a frenzy. Hindu mobs started attacking Muslims across the state. They started robbing, killing and even raping Muslims. Many Muslim families were killed in the attack. Bilki Bano and her family were among the Muslim families attacked by the Hindus. When Bilkis heard that a mob of Hindus were attacking Muslims, he decided to flee with his family to a safer place. During an interview, recalling the incident, Bilkis said:
I was in the kitchen preparing lunch when my aunt and her children were running around. They said that their houses were being set on fire and that we should leave immediately. We left with only the clothes we were wearing, we didn’t even have time to put on our slippers.”
The old house of Bilgi Bano and her family, which is now a shop
Bilkis (then 5 months pregnant), her daughter, mother, siblings and several other family members are hiding in the village, in the Sarpanch’s house. Then they took refuge in their village school and later moved to a mosque. During this time, one of her cousins, who was 9 months pregnant, gave birth to a baby girl. Bilkis and his family members tried to escape to different places, but on March 3, 2002, they were caught by a Hindu mob. A Hindu mob of 20-30 people attacked Bilkis and his family members. A mob man took Bilkis’s daughter and crushed her on a stone, after which her daughter died. Later, the mob brutally raped Bilkis, her siblings and mother. Out of 17 members of his family, 8 were killed and some were missing. Bilkis was left unconscious after the brutal attack, the crowd thought he was dead, so they left him there. According to reports, he regained consciousness almost three hours later. He covered his naked body with a robe lying nearby and then ran up the hill. The next day, when he woke up, his throat was dry, so he looked for water nearby. He then spotted a hand pump where an Adivasi lady gave him some clothes. Bilkis saw a police officer there, he asked for help. Then he was taken to Limkheda police station in a police jeep. At the police station, he testified before the police chief, Somabai Gori. Bilkis remained the only witness who knew the names of the perpetrators, as most of the men were known to him and from his village. The chief refused to register his complaint and sent him to a relief camp. In the camp, she met her husband, who had been missing since the incident. During the interview, Bilkis’ husband talked about the incident. She said,
I put everything aside – the turmoil, the family we lost. I was talking to him with love, trying to get him out of the pain he was going through.’ Since then, I have heard Bilkis’ testimony a million times, to the employees of non-governmental organizations, lawyers, journalists, but I never asked – what happened to you? who did what You heard the words too, but I felt them in my heart every time.”
An image of the 2002 Gujarat riots
At the camp, Bilkis underwent a medical examination and his case was immediately taken up by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). Later, the Supreme Court of India transferred his case to the CBI. Initially, the CBI tried to find the bodies of his family members, but they failed as the bodies were beheaded by the mob. Bilkis then requested the Supreme Court to shift his case outside Gujarat as he was facing death threats and had to move to 20 different flats. The Supreme Court accepted his appeal and in August 2004, the High Court transferred his case from Gujarat to a special court in Mumbai. A court case was filed against 19 men, including six police officers and a government doctor. Bilkis’s case was then taken up by Indian lawyer Shobha Gupta.
Mrs. Bilki with lawyer Shoba Gupta
On January 21, 2008, 13 men were convicted of rape in the Bilkis rape case, 11 of whom were sentenced to life imprisonment. The special court said that Jaswantbhai Nai, Govindbhai Nai and Naresh Kumar Mordia (deceased) raped Bilkis and Shailsh Bhat killed her daughter. While the other convicts in the case were Radheshyam Shah, Bipin Chandra Joshi, Kesarbhai Vohania, Pradeep Vohania, Bakabhai Vohania, Rajubhai Soni, Nitesh Bhatt, Ramesh Chandana and Senior Constable Somabhai Gori. In May 2017, the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Mumbai Special Court. In 2019, the Supreme Court of India ordered the Gujarat government to pay a compensation of Rs 50 lakh to Bilkis, but he refused to accept any compensation. Later, the Gujarat government set up a panel that gave the green flag to use life imprisonment for convicts. On August 15, 2022, the convicts were released from Godhra sub-jail. On the release of the convicts, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Raj Kumar said,
The remission application was considered because the convicts had 14 years in prison and factors such as “age, nature of crime, conduct in prison, etc.”
During the interview, Bilkis spoke about the release of convicts. She said,
The decision to release the men was “unfair”. It “shaken” my faith in justice. When I heard that the convicts who destroyed my family and life were walking free, I was speechless. I’m still numb. How can justice end for any woman like this? I trusted the highest courts of our country. I trusted the system and slowly learned to live with my trauma. The release of these convicts took away the peace and shook the faith in justice. I appeal to the Gujarat government to “undo this harm” and “give me back my right to live without fear and in peace”.
When Bilkis’ husband was asked the same, he said:
We were left numb, shocked and appalled. The battle we fought for so many years ended in a moment. The life sentence handed down by the court was so reduced… we didn’t even hear the word “remission”. We didn’t even know that such a process existed.”
After the release of the convicts, the video and photos circulated on the social network received a lot of criticism, as the convicts were greeted with sweets and garlands.
The convicts of Bilki Bano
Several photographs were released from the event in which the RSS honored the convicts.
The convicts of Bilki Bano were acquitted by the RSS
In an interview with journalists, one of the convicts, Shailesh Bhatt, said:
We were victims of politics. Singori is a small village. All convicts belong to this village. We were all victims of politics. I was a farmer and also an employee of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) district unit, while my brother was working as a clerk at Panchmahals Dairy when we were arrested. We were arrested in 2004 and stayed in prison for more than 18 years. It feels good to be home with my family. Everyone is happy to be back. My son was eight or nine years old then, now he is an adult and works in a milk company in Panchmahal. I’m happy for him.”
Later, a petition was filed against the release of Bano’s victims. The petition was filed by CPI(M) politburo member Subhashini Ali, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra and women’s rights activists. Chief Justice of India N.V. Presiding Judge Ramana agreed to hear the petition on August 25, 2022. During the hearing, the High Court issued a notice to the Gujarat government to file a reply in the case seeking release of the accused.
Categories: Biography
Source: dienchau2.edu.vn
