It was almost seven years ago that TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan was killed by a gang of five men, but her case has been dragging on in a Delhi court after Public Prosecutor (PP) in the case resigned eight months ago. Soumya’s mother Madhavi Vishwanathan started an online petition to gather support from public for a speedy trial, recently submitted the petition to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal urging him to appoint a PP at the earliest and help Soumya get justice. The Chief Minister assured her of complete support and has even written to the previous Public Prosecutor Rajiv Mohan to continue the trial since he is well acquainted with the facts in the case. “The public prosecutor has responded, but he has laid out few terms and conditions which has to negotiated by Delhi government's Home department. Once it is cleared there, the file goes to Najeeb Jung pending his approval,” she said. The ongoing tussle between the Chief Minister and the Lieutenant Governor has the family worried. The case is posted for next hearing in July and she hopes to hear positively from the government by then. Despite Soumya's media background and the attention the case has recieved, justice for her has been considerable delayed. In Soumya's case only 13 out the 60 prosecution witnesses have been examined till date. “By the time judgement is delivered, people will forget about the case. I have read about instances of cases being delayed for years and at the end of it, accused are acquitted. We are old and we wish to see justice for Soumya within our lifetime,” she adds. She feels that every trial needs to be time bound so that justice is delivered faster and also because it acts as a deterrent to criminals. On May 21, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal had directed Home Minister Satyendra Jain to ensure the appointment of a Special Prosecutor, but there seems to have been no progress on the same Case history Soumya Vishwanthan, a journalist with India Today was found dead in the wee hours of September 30, 2008 in Delhi with a gunshot wound on her head. For many months, the police were unable to track Soumya’s killers. The Delhi police, who were in the process of investigating the death of a BPO employee Jigisha Ghosh in 2009, also cracked the mystery of Soumya’s death after the accused confessed to killing Soumya. My friend Soumya Vishwanathan's case drags on, will it fade into oblivion?