Indian-Origin UK Woman, Friend Sent To Life In Jail In UP For Killing Husband

A court in UP's Shahjahanpur on Saturday sentenced to death a British national for murdering her husband, a Non-Resident Indian, with the help of a friend seven years ago, a government counsel said.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Pankaj Kumar Srivastava held Ramandeep Kaur, the wife of the victim - Sukhjeet Singh, guilty.

Her friend and accomplice, Gurpreet Singh, was also held guilty, sentenced to life in jail, and ordered to pay a fine of Rs 3 lakh.

Gurpreet was held guilty under the Arms Act and sentenced to three years in jail along with a fine of Rs 10,000.

Additional District Government Counsel Shree Pal Verma said Sukhjeet Singh (34), a resident of Basantapur under the Banda police station, went to England for a job in 2002. There, he became friends with Ramandeep Kaur, a resident of Derby.

Sukhjeet worked as a driver and subsequently married Ramandeep in 2005.

On July 28, 2016, Sukhjeet, Ramandeep, and their sons came to Shahjahanpur on vacation.

"On September 1, 2016, when Sukhjeet was sleeping with his sons Arjun and Aryan, he was attacked with a sharp-edged weapon by Ramandeep and her friend Gurpreet Singh," Mr Verma said, adding Arjun was nine years old and Aryan was seven at that time.

Both Ramandeep and Gurpreet were arrested and jailed.

After Sukhjeet's murder, Ramandeep's parents went to a court in England seeking custody of their grandchildren. However, the court rejected their application and said that the children should live with their paternal relatives.

"During the hearing in India, Arjun told the court that he was sleeping with his father when his mother smothered her husband with a pillow. Then, Gurpreet hit Sukhjeet with a hammer on his head. After that, Gurpreet took out a knife from his pocket and gave it to Ramandeep, who slit the throat of Sukhjeet," Mr Verma said.

Reacting to the verdict, Sukhjeet's mother Vanshjeet Kaur said, "I feel relieved. My prayers were answered and I got what I was expecting from the court. I was demanding capital punishment for Ramandeep so that no mother's child dies like this."

Superintendent of Police Ashok Kumar Meena said information about the judgment is being sent to the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, and the High Commission.

Asked if a British citizen can be sentenced to death by a court in India, Mr Verma said, "Why not? She committed a crime here and this was her in-laws' place. She was staying here. Before committing the crime, she was in Shahjahanpur, and she was in Shahjahanpur after the crime as well."

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