The Supreme Court on Thursday issued notices to Gujarat and the Centre while hearing a challenge to the state government’s release of 11 rape and murder convicts in the Bilkis Bano case.

Justice Ajay Rastogi, who was part of the special bench that included Chief Justice N.V. Ramana and Justice Vikram Nath, asked senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for one set of petitioners: “Merely because the act was horrific, can you argue that remission is wrong? Day in and out, remission is granted by the government to life convicts. What is the exception? What they have committed, for that they have been convicted. The only question is whether remission was within parameters of the law.”

Justice Rastogi had headed a two-judge bench that had on May 13 ruled that the Gujarat government had the power of remission in the matter since the crime was committed in the state.

“We have to see whether there was application of mind in this case while granting remission,” the three-judge bench said on Thursday. “The question is whether under the relevant scheme, they were justified in being granted remission.”

Justice Ramana clarified that the Supreme Court had never directed the remission of the convicts’ sentences.

“It is being said in some newspapers that the Supreme Court has granted permission for the release of the convicts, when the court had only directed that their application be considered,” he said.

The special bench asked the petitioners to implead the 11 convicts in the matter after some lawyers present raised objections saying this had not been done. They further argued that the pleas were not maintainable as the petitioners were not the victims -– an argument the bench brushed aside.

The court will hear the matter after four weeks. Chief Justice-designate U.U. Lalit is expected to preside over the bench as Justice Ramana retires on Friday.

Two public interest pleas have contested the remissions on the ground that the Gujarat government had not obtained the Centre’s permission, which was needed because the case had been investigated by a central agency, the CBI.

The petitioners have also argued that the 11 life convicts should not have been granted the relief because of the heinous nature of their offence – raping Bilkis and murdering seven of her family members, including her three-year-old daughter.

Gujarat had granted the remissions despite the Centre directing the states in 2014 not to remit the sentences of people convicted of crimes like rape and murder, the petitioners have underlined.

The top court is dealing with a petition filed jointly by veteran CPM leader Subhashini Ali, academic Roop Rekha Verma and journalist Revati Laul. Another petition challenging the remissions has been moved by Trinamul MP Mohua Moitra.

“It would be entirely against public interest and would shock the collective public conscience, as also be entirely against the interests of the victim (whose family has publicly made statements worrying for her safety) to grant remission in such a case,” the petition from Ali, Verma and Laul says.