"We remain hopeful"

Wednesday 17 April 2019

After months of little progress in the trial of the man accused of murdering Sarah Groves, her parents are hoping to finally see some change in the way the case is being handled.

Last month, ahead of the sixth anniversary of her death, Vic and Kate Groves sent a letter to the Judge who oversees the performance of the courts in Kashmir and reports to the Chief Justice of the state of Jammu & Kashmir.

The letter made a number of recommendations and requests, aiming to "unlock the log-jam that currently blights proceedings" and place the case onto a "proper and professional footing".

The Judge has since given a "positive response" to the letter and sought a Parawise Report from the Principal District Judge Srinagar, setting out the concerns raised and demanding a response from the Judge overseeing the murder trail.

Pictured: Sarah Groves and Richard de Wit who denies murdering her six years ago.

Mr and Mrs Groves are still waiting to hear back, but would like to see developments take effect from next month onwards: "We remain hopeful that the replacement of the current and woefully inadequate Special Public Prosecutor, Mr Mohammad Sultan, is now a real possibility."

They are still hoping for support from the UK media and Government in order to ensure the trial reaches a safe conclusion.

Although a hearing was due to take place yesterday and one witness did turn up to the court, civil unrest in the area meant it could not go ahead and has been postponed until 24 April.

"This delay was expected because elections always lead to an increase in civil unrest," said Mr Groves. "The State of Jammu & Kashmir is still under President's Rule due to the collapse last year of the State Government. President's Rule means that political control currently rests with Delhi rather than locally. This is yet another reason for the increase in civil unrest that has pervaded the region since last summer and which has been the main cause for absolutely no progress in this case since 1 November 2018."

Miss Groves' family have thanked everyone who supported them on the sixth anniversary of her death earlier this month.