NDTV has accessed more than one FIRs and police proceedings towards the convicts, which runs contrary to the justification of the Gujarat authorities that the convicts have been released for right behaviour.
Defending the early launch of eleven guys convicted of raping Bilkis Bano and killing her whole circle of relatives within the 2002 Gujarat riots, the Gujarat authorities referred to "desirable behaviour" and the Centre's approval.
But the "appropriate behaviour" claim has been shredded with the aid of FIRs revealed in opposition to the convicts, who spent heaps of days on parole even before their premature release.
NDTV has accessed a couple of FIRs and police proceedings wherein the convicts are accused of threatening and harassing witnesses at the same time as out on parole. In their "right behaviour" justification, the Gujarat authorities even claimed there was no evidence of any wrongdoing by the convicts while they were serving time in prison, and at the same time as they had been out on parole.
Between 2017-2021, at least 4 witnesses inside the Bilkis Bano case registered court cases and FIRs towards the convicts, NDTV's investigation famous.
NDTV has accessed one FIR and police proceedings.
*An FIR dated July 6, 2020, became registered in opposition to of the convicts, Radheshyam Shah and Miteshbhai Bhatt while they were out on parole.
The FIR (First Information Report) was filed at Radhikapur police station in Dahod beneath Sections 354 (attack or crook force with intention to outrage modesty), 504 (intimidation), 506 (2) (chance to kill) and 114 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) by Saberaben Patel, and a witness in the Bilkis Bano case, Pintubhai.
The FIR says three men, along with the 2 convicts and Radheshyam's brother Ashish, threatened Saberaben, her daughter Arfa and witness Pintubhai for implicating them with their statements.
*Mansuri Abdul Razzaq Abdul Majid, some other witness, filed a police criticism with Dahod police in opposition to Sailesh Chimmanlal Bhatt on January 1, 2021. He, too, alleged threats from the convict while he became out on parole.
This grievance in no way become an FIR.
*Two different witnesses, Ghanchi Adambhai Ismailbhai and Ghanchi Imtiazbhai Yusufbhai, filed a grievance towards one of the convicts, Govind Nai, on July 28, 2017. The candidates alleged that the accused threatened to kill them in the event that they did not "compromise", even as Nai changed into out on parole. This grievance additionally never changed into an FIR.
The convicts were freed on August 15 Independence Day and greeted with garlands and goodies like heroes outdoor a jail in Gujarat.
The Supreme Court remarked the day past that Gujarat's defence quoted a chain of judgments however neglected actual statements.
"I even have not encounter a counter affidavit wherein a sequence of judgments are quoted. Factual statement must had been made. A very cumbersome counter. Where is the authentic announcement, in which is the utility of mind?" a bench headed by way of Justice Ajay Rastogi found.
Union Minister Prahlad Joshi defended the convicts' release, bringing up their "top behaviour".
"When the government and the concerned human beings have taken the choice, I don't locate some thing wrong in it as it's miles a method of regulation," Mr Joshi told NDTV.
Reacting to the outrage over the "law" applied on convicts sentenced for what the CBI called a "heinous, grave and severe" crime, the Minister echoed Gujarat's "excellent behaviour" argument.
"After having been in prison for some time, if their behaviour...There are so many incidents, I don't need to get into that," Mr Joshi said.