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Hindu men who gang-raped Muslim woman released from jail on India’s independence day
- The 11 men were jailed for life in 2008. An official said the were released after considering the time they had spent in jail and their good behaviour
- Media footage showed a man feeding the convicts confectionery outside the jail after touching the feet of one of them, a mark of respect
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Reutersin Ahmedabad
Eleven Hindu men jailed for life for the gang-rape of a pregnant Muslim woman during Hindu-Muslim riots in 2002 have been freed on remission, drawing condemnation from the victim’s husband, lawyers and politicians.
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The men were convicted in early 2008 and released from jail in Panchmahals in the western state of Gujarat on Monday, when India celebrated 75 years since the end of British rule.
The Gujarat violence, one of India’s worst religious riots, led to the deaths of more than 1,000 people, most of them Muslims. Gujarat was then led by current Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as chief minister, and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party still rules it.
Panchmahals’ top bureaucrat said on Tuesday that the district jail advisory committee had recommended the 11 men’s release after considering the time they had spent in jail and their good behaviour.
“The fact is they had spent close to 15 years in jail and were eligible for remission,” Sujal Jayantibhai Mayatra said.
Indian laws allow convicts to seek remission after 14 years in jail, officials said.
Media footage showed a man feeding the convicts confectionery outside the jail after touching the feet of one of them, a mark of respect.
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