On Wednesday, a Jammu and Kashmir court heard a new petition filed by the family of Satish Tickoo, a killed Kashmiri Pandit, against Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leader Farooq Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karate. The next hearing has been set for April 16 by the court, which has requested a progress report on the case. “It was the first day of the murder trial’s first hearing.
The outcome of the court hearing was extremely beneficial for the family. We informed the court that this is a severe situation. Karate assassinated Tickoo in cold blood. We are hopeful that justice will be served. The victim’s family has been seeking justice and a proper trial for 31 years, according to advocate Utsav Bains, who represents the victim’s family. He expressed optimism that the family will “get justice and closure” as a result of the Constitution’s provisions.
Karate confessed about Tickoo murder in Interview
“In an interview with the BBC [international news channel], Karate admitted [to the crime].” Tickoo was Karate’s first victim. “Now there is a light of hope that they, like other Indians who have been ruthlessly slaughtered [in Kashmir], would receive justice,” Mr. Bains added.
The court admonished Karate’s lawyer for attempting to disturb the proceedings, which he described as “unfortunate.” The Tickoo’s have asked for a “proper, fair, and impartial investigation” as well as a “status report of the previous probe.” On February 2, 1990, Tickoo, a merchant, was shot dead outside his home in Srinagar’s Karfalli neighborhood.
Karate, a JKLF ‘commander’ in 1989, was arrested and accused of the murder of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990. He was released in 2007 by the Supreme Court after serving more than 15 years in prison. He was arrested again in 2017, following a sting operation by a TV channel, and is being detained in New Delhi.