The convicts, who were jailed in 2008, were released in August of this year. An affidavit submitted by the Gujarat government to the center said that the convicts spent 14 years in prison and exhibited 'good behaviour' during this time, which is why the decision to release them is being taken.
The men had attacked Bilkis Bano when communal violence broke out in Gujarat in 2002 —when now-PM Modi was the chief minister of the state. Bano, who was on a truck with her family trying to escape the mob, was 21 years old at the time, and also five months pregnant. The men killed her three-year-old-daughter by throwing her into the air and smashing her to the ground, as well as 13 other members of her family.
The decision to release the convicts was met with a lot of outrage, with people questioning whether convicts of such a 'grave, heinous crime' could be let off on the basis of time spent in prison.
An Indian minister defended the decision and according to NDTV, said, “When the government and the concerned people have taken the decision, I don’t find anything wrong in it as it is a process of law.”