'This is what justice feels like, I can breathe again': Bilkis Bano after Supreme Court verdict
"I have wept tears of relief. I have smiled for the first time in over a year and half. I have hugged my children. It feels like a stone the size of a mountain has been lifted from my chest, and I can breathe again," Bilkis Bano said after Monday's SC verdict.
FollowIn a significant and emotional moment for Bilkis Bano, the survivor of a horrific incident during the 2002 Gujarat riots, the Supreme Court of India quashed the remission granted to 11 men convicted of raping her and murdering seven members of her family. The apex court not only overturned the Gujarat government's decision to grant remission but also criticized it for being "stereotyped" and lacking thoughtful consideration.
Bilkis Bano, expressing her gratitude and relief, stated through her lawyer, Shobha Gupta, that "today is truly the New Year for me." She articulated the profound impact of the Supreme Court's verdict on her emotional well-being, remarking, "I have wept tears of relief. I have smiled for the first time in over a year and half. I have hugged my children. It feels like a stone the size of a mountain has been lifted from my chest, and I can breathe again."
"This is what justice feels like. I thank the honourable Supreme Court of India for giving me, my children and women everywhere this vindication and hope in the promise of equal justice for all," she added.
The Gujarat government was accused of power abuse by the Supreme Court, which further directed that the 11 men involved be returned to jail within a span of two weeks. Bano emphasized in her statement that journeys like hers are never solitary endeavors.
"I have had my husband and my children by my side. I have had my friends who have given me so much love at a time of such hate, and held my hand at each difficult turn. I have had an extraordinary lawyer, Advocate Shobha Gupta, who has walked with me unwaveringly for over 20 long years, and who never allowed me to lose hope in the idea of justice," she said.
She added that "a year and half ago, on August 15, 2022, when those who had destroyed my family and terrorised my very existence, were given an early release, I simply collapsed".
Bano said she felt she had exhausted her "reservoir of courage", until a "million solidarities" came her way.
"Thousands of ordinary people and women of India came forward. They stood with me, spoke for me, and filed PIL petitions in the Supreme Court. 6,000 people from all over, and 8,500 people from Mumbai wrote appeals, 10,000 people wrote an Open Letter, as did 40,000 people from 29 districts of Karnataka," she said.
"To each of these people, my gratitude for your precious solidarity and strength. You gave me the will to struggle, to rescue the idea of justice not just for me, but for every woman in India. I thank you," Bano said.
She conveyed that as she comprehends the complete significance of this verdict "for my own life, and for my children's lives, the 'dua' that emerges from my heart today is simple -- the rule of law, above all else and equality before law, for all."
