New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday nullified the remission of 11 convicts involved in the gang-rape of Bilkis Bano and the murder of seven of her family members in 2002.

The apex court ruled that the Gujarat government lacked jurisdiction to consider applications for the remission of sentences for 11 convicts. The convicts have now been directed to surrender within two weeks and serve their imprisonment.

The court asserted that only the government of the state where the offenders were sentenced had the authority to review such applications and issue orders.

“Government of the State of Gujarat (respondent No.1 herein) had no jurisdiction to entertain the applications for remission or pass the orders of remission on August 10, 2022, in favour of respondent No.3 to 13 (convicts) herein as it was not the appropriate government within the meaning of sub-section (7) of Section 432 of the CrPC,” the bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said.

The Gujarat government granted remission to all 11 convicts, releasing them on August 15, 2022. Bilkis Bano’s legal challenge against the remission of the 11 convicts succeeded due to jurisdictional incompetence. DeshGujarat