Editor's Pick: Setback for Bilkis Bano

The Supreme Court has dismissed a plea by Bilkis Bano to review its May judgment which allowed the Gujarat government to consider and prematurely release 11 convicts serving life sentences for gangraping her and killing seven members of her family during the 2002 riots. Back in August while releasing the convicts, the Gujarat government had said it relied on its old remission policy of 1992 to approve their applications for remission of the sentence and not the current policy of 2014. Ms. Bano’s petition had wanted the top court to reconsider its judgment from earlier this year which the Gujarat government relied on to apply the State’s Premature Release Policy of 1992 while deciding pleas made by the convicts for early release. In its May 13 judgment, a Supreme Court Bench led by Justice Ajay Rastogi had concluded that Gujarat was the “appropriate government” under Section 432 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to decide the remission of the convicts in the case and not Maharashtra, where the trial took place. It also directed Gujarat to consider the premature release application using the old policy that was prevalent at the time of conviction in 2008. The fresh dismissal of Ms. Bano’s review petition comes from a Bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and Vikram Nath. While it was the apex court’s May judgment that the State of Gujarat used to validate the release of the convicts, several judgments of the Supreme Court, most recently in April this year, have underscored that a State cannot exercise its remission powers arbitrarily. The court, in State of Haryana versus Mohinder Singh, had held that the grant of remission should be “informed, fair and reasonable”. The court had in Laxman Naskar versus Union of India laid down some questions which should feature in the State’s mind before deciding on remission. One of these is whether the offence is an individual act of crime that does not affect the society. Notably, while hearing other petitions challenging the release of the 11 convicts, the Court had directed Gujarat to submit an affidavit. The State government’s affidavit showed that the Special Judge and the CBI in Mumbai had opposed the premature release of the 11 convicts but authorities in Gujarat and the Home Ministry recommended it. The refusal of the top court to review its key judgment brings a setback in Ms. Bano’s case, which had generated renewed furore in August from various quarters when the convicts were released. As this editorial in The Hindu pointed out in August, any decision on remission should be linked to the convict’s expression of regret and some promise of reform. The release of the 11 persons ahead of then pending State elections in Gujarat raised questions about whether the decision was a political consideration. Besides, the sight of the released convicts being garlanded on their release was not to be easy on the country’s conscience. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor‘s Pick and more. Click here. The Hindu Explains The challenges of quantum computing How can mRNA vaccines help fight cancer? The Hindu Daily News Quiz Gujarat’s Morbi town in October saw a bridge-collapse tragedy that claimed the lives of several people. While the BJP got 45% of the vote share in Morbi in the last State election (2017), what was its vote share in Morbi in the 2022 State election? 40% 35% 75% 60% To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 18 DECEMBER 2022 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Dear reader, We have now made it easier for you to manage your The Hindu newsletter subscriptions in one place! 1. Visit [The Hindu newsletters page]( 2. Click MANAGE tab and then click LOGIN / SIGN UP 3. If you don’t have an account with The Hindu, please click SIGN UP OR If you already have an account with The Hindu with this email ID, please login using the email ID Setback for Bilkis Bano The Supreme Court [has dismissed a plea]( by Bilkis Bano to review its May judgment which allowed the Gujarat government to consider and prematurely release 11 convicts serving life sentences for gangraping her and killing seven members of her family during the 2002 riots. Back in August [while releasing the convicts]( the Gujarat government had said it relied on its old remission policy of 1992 to approve their applications for remission of the sentence and not the current policy of 2014. Ms. Bano’s petition had wanted the top court to reconsider its judgment from earlier this year which the Gujarat government relied on to apply the State’s Premature Release Policy of 1992 while deciding pleas made by the convicts for early release. In its May 13 judgment, a Supreme Court Bench led by Justice Ajay Rastogi had concluded that Gujarat was the “appropriate government” under Section 432 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to decide the remission of the convicts in the case and not Maharashtra, where the trial took place. It also directed Gujarat to consider the premature release application using the old policy that was prevalent at the time of conviction in 2008. The fresh dismissal of Ms. Bano’s review petition comes from a Bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and Vikram Nath. While it was the apex court’s May judgment that the State of Gujarat used to validate the release of the convicts, several judgments of the Supreme Court, most recently in April this year, have underscored that a State cannot exercise its remission powers arbitrarily. The court, in State of Haryana versus Mohinder Singh, had held that the grant of remission should be “informed, fair and reasonable”. The court had in Laxman Naskar versus Union of India laid down some questions which should feature in the State’s mind before deciding on remission. One of these is whether the offence is an individual act of crime that does not affect the society. Notably, while hearing other petitions challenging the release of the 11 convicts, the Court had directed Gujarat to submit an affidavit. The State government’s affidavit showed that the Special Judge and the CBI in Mumbai had opposed the premature release of the 11 convicts but authorities in Gujarat and the Home Ministry recommended it. The refusal of the top court to review its key judgment brings a setback in Ms. Bano’s case, which had generated renewed furore in August from various quarters when the convicts were released. As [this editorial]( in The Hindu pointed out in August, any decision on remission should be linked to the convict’s expression of regret and some promise of reform. The release of the 11 persons ahead of then pending State elections in Gujarat raised questions about whether the decision was a political consideration. Besides, the sight of the released convicts being garlanded on their release was not to be easy on the country’s conscience. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor‘s Pick and more. [Click here.]( The Hindu Explains [Arrow][The challenges of quantum computing]( [Arrow][How can mRNA vaccines help fight cancer?]( The Hindu Daily News Quiz Gujarat’s Morbi town in October saw a bridge-collapse tragedy that claimed the lives of several people. While the BJP got 45% of the vote share in Morbi in the last State election (2017), what was its vote share in Morbi in the 2022 State election? - 40% - 35% - 75% - 60% To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. Interested in daily updates from Tamil Nadu? 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