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Bilkis Bano (Godhra) Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 4, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth1981 (year)

Age41 Years (as of 2022)

BirthplaceVillage Radhikpur, District Dahod, Gujarat

ProfessionHomemaker

NationalityIndian

Marital statusMarried

SpouseYakub Rasool

FamilyLost several immediate family members in 2002; eldest daughter Saleha was killed; has other daughters, including a youngest named Saleha

Bilkis Bano (Godhra) Biography

Bilkis Bano is an Indian homemaker who survived extreme violence during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Her case became one of the highest-profile legal battles in

Early life and background

Bilkis Yakub Rasool was born around 1981 in the village of Radhikpur in Dahod district, Gujarat. She grew up in a family whose father, Abdul Ghachi, sold milk. Her listed hometown is Devgadh Baria in Gujarat. Bilkis is identified as a Muslim and has worked as a homemaker.

Personal and family life

Bilkis married Yakub Rasool and became a mother. At the time of the 2002 events she was pregnant and travelling with several relatives. The violence that overtook her village left deep personal losses: several members of her immediate family, including her mother, younger sisters and her eldest daughter Saleha, were killed. She later named a youngest daughter Saleha in memory of the child she lost.

Career

Bilkis is described professionally as a homemaker. Her public profile and the legal proceedings that followed the violence thrust her case into national attention, and she became known for her testimony and for seeking justice through India’s legal system.

The 2002 attacks and legal battle

In early March 2002, during the communal unrest that followed the Godhra train burning, Bilkis and a group of family members fled their home and sought shelter. During an attack on 3 March 2002, she and female relatives were sexually assaulted, and many relatives were killed or went missing. She survived after being left unconscious and later fled to safety.

Bilkis provided the only eyewitness account to the events affecting her family and identified several of the attackers as people from her own village. Her case was examined by medical and investigative authorities and attracted the involvement of the National Human Rights Commission. The Supreme Court transferred jurisdiction of her matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation, and later ordered that her case be heard outside Gujarat. In 2004 the trial was moved to Mumbai and a special court there prosecuted the accused, which included several men and a police officer.

In January 2008 a Mumbai special court convicted 13 men on rape-related charges; 11 received life sentences. The Bombay High Court upheld that decision in May 2017. In 2019 the Supreme Court directed the Gujarat government to award her a compensation payment of Rs 50 lakhs, an offer that Bilkis refused.

Developments after conviction

In August 2022 the Gujarat government approved remission applications submitted on behalf of the convicted men, and they were released from Godhra sub-jail. Bilkis publicly expressed shock and distress at the decision, saying the release had shaken her faith in justice and taken from her a sense of peace. Her husband described the family as stunned by the remission process, which they said they had not known about.

The release prompted petitions and political responses; a plea was filed in the Supreme Court contesting the remission. In January 2024 the Supreme Court criticized the Gujarat government's action as a "fraud act" and ordered the convicts to surrender to jail authorities within two weeks, signaling that the highest court would further examine the remission decision.

Public profile

Bilkis’s case has remained in the public eye for two decades, involving human rights bodies, the CBI, and multiple courts. Her experience and testimony drew national media attention and support from lawyers and activists who assisted in moving her case through the legal system. She has been photographed and interviewed at various stages of the proceedings and has been represented by legal counsel who took up her matter in trial court.

Latest updates

As of early 2024, the Supreme Court intervened to review the Gujarat government’s remission of sentences in her case, directing the convicts to surrender pending further orders. Bilkis has continued to speak publicly about the impact of those decisions on her life and on her trust in the justice system.
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Recent Work

Legal testimony and participation in prosecution of the 2002 attack

Key eyewitness and complainant whose testimony anchored the prosecution that led to convictions in 2008 and subsequent appeals and hearings.

2002-2019
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Career Highlights

  1. Survived the 2002 attack during the Gujarat riots and provided the principal eyewitness account
  2. Case transferred by the Supreme Court and tried in a Mumbai special court
  3. Thirteen men convicted in 2008; convictions upheld by the Bombay High Court in 2017
  4. Supreme Court directed compensation in 2019 and later intervened on remission matters in 2024
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Bilkis Bano (Godhra) born?

1981 (year)

What is Bilkis Bano (Godhra) known for?

Homemaker

What is Bilkis Bano (Godhra)’s marital status?

Married

Who is Bilkis Bano (Godhra) married to?

Yakub Rasool