SC gives 2 weeks to Gujarat government to pay Rs 50 lakh to Bilkis

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Gujarat government to pay Rs 50 lakh compensation to Bilkis Bano — a gang rape victim of post-Godhra 2002 Gujarat riots — within two weeks, as well as a job and residential accommodation.

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state government, submitted before the bench that they sought to seek a review of the April order by the top court. He pointed to the rape victim compensation scheme and the bearing the court’s order would have in other cases.

At this, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, heading the three-judge bench, said that the order to pay compensation along with a job and accommodation was in view of specific facts and circumstances in the particular case.

“We make it clear that our order was in view of the particular facts and will not be a precedent. Now you pay her the compensation within two weeks. We are giving you two weeks although you may not even need that much time,” said the court.

The court had in April directed the state government to pay Ms Bano the compensation, and also assure her a job and accommodation. It had then said: “While the state eventually punished the perpetrators of the crime, the victim was left devastated after seeing human fury at its worst.”

The court added: “Not only was she raped 22 times, her daughter aged 3.2 years was smashed to death. Ever since the appellant has been living a nomadic life and surviving at the charity of

 NGOs. The appellant is now 40 years old and not very well educated. She has lost her entire family.”

“We don’t have to search for elaborate principles of law to decide that the victim must be adequately compensated. Time and again this court has held that quantum of compensation has to be judged according to the loss suffered,” held the Supreme Court on its April order.

Ms Bano had moved the top court after she was given a meagre amount of compensation though she was entitled to more.

Bilkis Yakub Rasoiol was 19 years old and pregnant when she was subjected to the horror during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The horrifying incidents occurred in Randhikpur village near Dahod on March 3, 2002, when Ms Bano and around a dozen of her family members were attacked by a mob. Many of those attacked were killed.

Only Ms Bano and two relatives, Saddam and Husain, survived the savagery. Her mother, sister, minor daughter and other relatives were killed.