Bilkis Bano case: FIRs against convicts contradict Gujarat Govt's 'good behaviour' justification

Ahmedabad: Contradicting the Gujarat government's justification for the early release of the assailants, who have been convicted in the Bilkis Bano case, reports suggest that there are FIRs against them for threatening and harassing witnesses, besides charges of assaulting a woman and late surrender when one of them was on parole.

The Gujarat government had given reports of their good behaviour, proposing the release of convicts, who were sentenced to life in prison for the heinous crime they did during the 2002 Gujarat riot. The state government report also said that there is no evidence to show the bad behaviour of the convicts during their serving time.

According to an NDTV report, at least four witnesses had filed FIRs against Radheshyam Shah and Miteshbhai Bhatt, two of the 11 convicts in the case, for intimidating and threatening them between 2017-2021.

The FIR read by the NDTV said that three men, including two convicts and Radheshyam's brother Ashish, threatened Saberaben, her daughter Arfa and witness Pintubhai for incriminating them with their statements.

Another witness, Mansuri Abdul Razzaq Abdul Majid, filed an FIR with Dahod police against Sailesh Chimmanlal Bhatt on January 1, 2021, for threatening him while Bhatt was on parole.

Mitesh Bhatt, another convicted in the case, was charged with assaulting a woman with the intention of outraging her modesty when he was out on parole. There was the FIR was lodged under Sections 354 (Whoever assaults or uses criminal force to any woman, intending to outrage or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby outrage her modesty), 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (2) (aggravated criminal intimidation) and 114 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).