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Bench ruled that there was “clear-cut evidence” against them.
Today, Supreme Court dismissed the appeals of 4 policemen including an IPS & 2 doctors officer challenging their conviction by the Bombay HC in sensational 2002 Bilkis Bano case, saying that there’s “clear-cut evidence” against them.
Bench of Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao said that the trial court had acquitted them “unreasonably”, while the bench was rejecting their appeals.
IPS officer- R. S. Bhagora, who’s currently serving in Gujarat, was recently convicted along with 4 other policemen by the HC, overturning trial court order acquitting them.
On 4th May, Bombay HC had reversed the trial court verdict acquitting IPS Bhagora & others & upheld the conviction of 11 people (1 convict is dead) in the Bilkis Bano gang rape & murder case.
Counsel for Bhagora said he’s unnecessarily caught in this web of circumstances & had no direct role in the incident.
However, the bench, refused to go into the matter saying Bhagora was supervising officer in this case & everything happened under his nose.
Advocate Shobha, appearing for Bikis Bano, opposed the appeals of convicts.
The HC bench had convicted 7 persons – 5 policemen & 2 doctors – under Sections 218 (not performing their duties) & Section 201 (tampering of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code. The Supreme Court had on 30th May refused to stay the conviction of Bhagora.
A vacation bench of Justices A K Sikri & Deepak Gupta said there’s no urgency for hearing this matter since the convicted officer had already undergone the sentence.
A Special Court had on 21st January 2008 convicted & sentenced to life imprisonment 11 men for raping Bilkis & murdering 7 of her family members in the aftermath of Godhra riots, while acquitting 7 persons including the policemen & doctors.
Convicts later approached the Bombay HC challenging their conviction.
The Central Bureau of Investigation had also filed an appeal in the HC seeking harsher punishment of death for 3 of the convicted persons on the ground that they’re main perpetrators of the crime.
Related News-
30.5.2017 – Supreme Court refuses urgent hearing to convicted Gujarat cop in Bilkis Bano case
