The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition seeking a CBI probe into the killing of about 700 Kashmiri Pandits.
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition seeking a CBI probe into the killing of about 700 Kashmiri Pandits. A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud dismissed NGO Roots in Kashmir’s plea saying that 27 years had passed and evidence “is unlikely to be available”.
“More then 700 Kashmiri Pandits were murdered and butchered to death in most brutal and gruesome manner by Hizbul Mujahideen and JKLF terrorists like Yasin Malik and Farooq Ahmed Daar @ Bitta karate and Javed Nalka in year 1989-90, 1997 and 1998 in Jammu and Kashmir, and more than 200 FIRs were lodged by State Police for such murders, but not even a single FIR has been yet investigated and prosecuted by the State… till date, and Union of India has failed to take any measures to ensure delivery of justice to the families of victims…and to prosecute and punish terrorists like Yasin Malik and Farooq Ahmed Daar @ Bitta Karate, who openly and proudly admit to murders of Kashmiri Pandits…” the petitioner alleged.
The NGO had sought transfer of the cases outside the state and handing over their investigation to a central agency like the CBI or NIA.
CJI Khehar questioned why the petitioner’s lawyer had not approached the court over 27 years. “You sat over it for 27 years. Now tell us from where the evidence will come.’’ The counsel replied: “We were unable to join the investigation as we had to flee our homes due to the militancy.’’ When an FIR is filed, it has to be investigated, the lawyer added. “Let them at least file a closure report so (that) we get a sense of justice,’’ he said. He said that every government had promised to address it. “But after 27 years, we have realised that no government is going to do anything… No one took notice of it then. Nobody took suo motu cognizance,’’ he said.
His arguments did not go down well with the CJI, who reprimanded the counsel. “You are making a political speech to me… you are not arguing the law… You are making a drama here. You want to get a news report? What else you are doing?…you are only interested in headlines,’’ he said. The counsel submitted that dismissing his petition would affect the pending cases. The CJI replied: “It should affect. Let them know you were responsible.’’
