Bilkis Bano case convict gets 7-day parole over family’s ‘economic condition’

The court ordered Shah’s release for seven days from the date of his actual release, on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 10,000 and subject to conditions including surrendering to the jail authorities immediately upon expiry of the parole period and marking his presence at the nearest police station on the third and fifth days from his release.

During the proceedings on Thursday, Shah’s counsel K D Parmar informed the court that he was seeking parole due to the “economic condition of the family” and to “help with finances.” The counsel also informed the court that he had been last granted parole in December 2025.

Shah, who is serving a life sentence for the gangrape of Bilkis Bano and the murder of seven members of her family during the 2002 Gujarat riots, was among the 10 convicts, who were granted remission in August 2022 before the Supreme Court annulled the remission granted by the Gujarat government and directed them to return to prison in January 2024.

Shah’s role in the remission litigation was distinct from that of the other convicts. He was the only one among the 11 to approach the Supreme Court on the question of which government had jurisdiction to decide an application for premature release and which remission policy would apply to him.

In May 2022, the Supreme Court held that Gujarat was the appropriate government competent to consider his application for premature release and directed the state to examine it under its remission policy dated July 9, 1992 – the policy applicable on the date of his conviction.

The Gujarat government subsequently granted remission to all 11 convicts on August 15, 2022, allowing them to walk out of Godhra sub-jail. Bilkis Bano challenged the decision before the Supreme Court. On January 8, 2024, the Supreme Court quashed the remission orders, holding that the Gujarat government had no jurisdiction to grant the relief and had effectively usurped the power of the Maharashtra government. The 11 convicts were subsequently directed to surrender and returned to Godhra jail within the stipulated period.

Shah’s legal background had played a role in the litigation even before the remission proceedings. A law graduate from Law College, Godhra, he was practising as a lawyer in the Limkheda magisterial court and Godhra district court before his arrest in 2004.

After being convicted by a Mumbai court in 2008, Shah approached the Bombay High Court seeking transfer to a Gujarat prison, citing his wish to remain closer to his family. His plea eventually resulted in the Maharashtra government ordering his transfer to a Gujarat jail in 2009.