Bilkis Bano gang rape: Supreme Court rejects plea by convicts seeking extension of time to surrender

The Supreme Court on Friday rejected the applications filed by eleven convicts in the Bilkis Bano gang rape case seeking additional time to surrender before the concerned jail authorities..A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said that there was no valid reason cited by the convicts to allow such requests."No reason seen in application to allow extension. All applications dismissed," the Court ordered.The convicts Jaswant Nai, Govind Nai, Shailesh Bhatt, Radheshyam Bhagwandas Shah, Bipin Chandra Joshi, Kesarbhai Vohania, Pradeep Mordhiya, Bakabhai Vohania, Rajubhai Soni, Mitesh Bhatt and Ramesh Chandana will have to surrender by January 22, the deadline set by the top court in its January 8 judgment. .The Supreme Court had on January 8 ordered the convicts to surrender within two weeks, but all of them moved the Court seeking an additional four to six weeks of time to surrender citing various grounds such as domestic responsibilities, harvest of winter crops, old age and ill health..The Gujarat government had granted remission to the 11 convicts in August 2023, following a May 2022 judgment in which the top court held that an application of remission should be considered in line with the policy of the State where the crime was committed (Gujarat, in this case) and not where the trial was held.Pursuant to that judgment, the Gujarat government applied its remission policy to release the convicts though the trial in the case had taken place in Maharashtra.The Gujarat government's decision was challenged by various petitioners including Bano before the top court.The Supreme Court on January 8 quashed the remission granted to them by the Gujarat government. It concluded that the Gujarat government had no power to apply its remission policy to these eleven convicts.