The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Sunday, June 11, 2000,
Chandigarh, India

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50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

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M A I N N E W S

Of love across seas & murder
From Ruchika Mohindra
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 10 — The murder of a Canadian citizen and the attempt on the life of her Indian husband allegedly by contract killers hired by her family, sore over of her love marriage with a boy of a lower socio-economic status, has once again raised a big question mark over the claims of having ridden society of any socio-economic discrimination.

The deceased, identified as Jaswinder Kaur alias Jassi was a citizen of Canada and had married Sukhwinder Singh, alias Mithoo, a resident of Kaonke Khus village, near Jagraon, three months ago after a torrid affair with the boy across the seven seas for the past two years. The two had reportedly met and fallen in love while the girl was in India two years ago. While Jaswinder Kaur died during the armed attack on her on June 8, her husband still lies in the Christian Medical College and Hospital with serious injuries on his head and hands, unaware of the sorry end to his love story.

The body of the deceased was found in a link canal by the residents of Bulara village last morning and the Sadar police station was alerted. A police party led by the S.H.O. of the Sadar police station, Inspector Maninder Bedi, reached the spot and retrieved the body from the link canal and then began the process of initiating an inquiry to identify the deceased.

Meanwhile, a news report about an unidentified body being found led the Amargarh police in Sangrur district to Ludhiana this morning. On the intervening night of June 8 and 9, a case had been registered at the Amargarh police station under Sections 364, 307 and 34 of the IPC on the statement of Sukhwinder Singh alleging that while he was returning to Narike village from Malerkotla earlier on June 8, along with Jaswinder Kaur, they were attacked by four unknown persons. He had alleged that one of the assailants had thrown a hockey stick at him while both of them were on a scooter. He further alleged that while the accused missed the aim at him, the stick hit Jaswinder Kaur on the head and she fell off the scooter.

Sukhwinder Singh had also complained that he was assaulted with sharp-edged weapons. Taking him for dead, they assailants took away his wife. A case was registered and the police was on the lookout for the girl. He had reportedly told the police that after a case of forgery registered against him by the relatives of the girl earlier this year was recently quashed by the high court in his favour after Jaswinder gave a statement in his favour, the girls family, specifically her maternal uncle, had vowed to take revenge on them.

A few friends and relatives of Sukhwinder Singh, meanwhile, today came to the civil hospital here late in the afternoon, to claim her body and perform the last rites after the post-mortem examination. A police party led by A.S.I. Hardeep Singh, S.H.O. of the Amargarh police station, had also reached the civil hospital. While talking to TNS, A.S.I. Hardeep Singh said the police was making all-out efforts to track down the accused. Nakas had been laid at various points in Sangrur and Moga districts. Other than this a few persons had also been rounded up. The ASI did not rule out that it could well be a case of contract killing.

Meanwhile, in an exclusive chat with TNS, Lakbir Singh, a close friend of Sukhwinder Singh, informed that trouble had been brewing between the two sides for the past couple of months ever since Jaswinder, a Canadian born citizen had come to India. The couple tied the nuptial knot at Baba Bakaala only three months ago. After this the girl was reportedly sent off to Canada by her family.

“Once she reached there, there was no contact with Sukhwinder and he got worried and called up one of her friends in Canada. This friend, then took the help of the Canadian police and the girl was found locked away in another of her maternal uncle’s house in Canada. Meanwhile, the maternal uncle of Jaswinder here, with the connivance of the Jagraon police allegedly got a case of forgery registered against Sukhwinder on charges that he was wrongly claiming his marriage to Jaswinder. Sukhwinder was also rounded up by the police and it was only after Jaswinder, after being released from her captivity in Canada, sent a fax marriage that she had indeed married Sukhwinder that he was released,” he informed.

He also said that the deceased came back to India against the wishes of her parents a few weeks ago and the couple were now staying at Narike with the maternal family of Sukhwinder. It was while the couple was returning to Narike from Malerkotla that the incident took place. He also informed that the main objection of the girl’s family to the marriage was that the boy was a taxi driver and not of the same economic status.