Bilkis Bano
Bilkis Bano has approached the Indian Supreme Court to challenge the premature release of 11 convicts who gang-raped her. The men killed 14 of her family members, including her three year old daughter, during the 2002 anti-Muslim pogroms in the state of Gujurat. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was chief minister of Gujarat at the time, has been accused of aiding and abetting the killings and violence. Advocate Shoba Gupta, appearing on behalf of Banu, urged the Chief Justice of India to allow the case to be heard in an open court. The convicts walked out of the jail on August 15, after a Gujarat government panel approved their release. One member of the panel, a leading member of India’s ruling BJP-RSS regime, said that since they are Brahmin they deserved to be released. Brahmin is the highest caste in India of high privilege.
