TRS appeals to people to ‘Speak Up’ against release of rapists

Hyderabad: The TRS is upping the ante against the BJP-led Central government especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the national level over the studied silence on the remission granted to 11 convicts in the case pertaining to Bilkis Bano’s rape and murder of seven others during the 2002 riots in Gujarat. The TRS top leadership […]

Hyderabad: The TRS is upping the ante against the BJP-led Central government especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the national level over the studied silence on the remission granted to 11 convicts in the case pertaining to Bilkis Bano’s rape and murder of seven others during the 2002 riots in Gujarat. The TRS top leadership is appealing to people of the country to ‘speak up’ and stop this ‘extremely dangerous tradition’ before it takes the shape of a legacy.

TRS working president and Minister KT Rama Rao had been actively persuing the issue and raising concerns on various fora since the Gujarat government’s decision. He had already urged Prime Minister Modi to intervene and rescind the Gujarat government’s order. He also requested the Prime Minister to amend the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) suitably so that no rapist can get a bail through judiciary.

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With the Centre remaining unresponsive, Rama Rao took to Twitter appealing the people of the country to ‘Speak Up’. Terming the Gujarat government’s decision as a blot on the collective conscience of the nation, he strongly condemned the treatment of rapists like war heroes or freedom fighters. “This is a blot on the collective conscience of our nation. Rapists being garlanded & treated like war heroes or freedom fighters!!! Remember, what happened to #BilkisBano today can happen to anyone of us tomorrow. Speak up India, (sic)” he tweeted.

In a series of tweets in Hindi, MLC K Kavitha said it was imperative to stop this extremely dangerous tradition before it takes the form of a legacy. She termed the hero welcome to the rapists and murders after they were released from jail in Gujarat was a slap on the face of a just society. She lamented that the release of the culprits involved in heinous crimes like rape and murder on the auspicious occasion of Independence Day, has tarnished the divinity of the day and was done in violation of the Centre’s guidelines against it.

“The BJP government in Gujarat has displayed insensitivity by releasing the rapists of the then five-month pregnant Bilkis Bano and the murder of her three-year old child. This is not only against the law, but stands against humanity. Being a woman I can feel the pain and fear experienced by Bilkis Bano,” she tweeted. She requested the Supreme Court to intervene and take immediate action on these developments failing to ensure that people do not lose their faith in the law.

On August 15, all the 11 convicts sentenced to life imprisonment in the 2002 case of Bilkis Bano’s gang rape and murder of her seven family members during the riots walked out of the Godhra sub-jail after the BJP government in Gujarat allowed their release under its remission policy. The released prisoners were reportedly welcomed with sweets and garlands by their relatives and members of an organisation.