70-year-old farmer ‘hacked’ to death in Ludhiana

A 70-year-old farmer was allegedly hacked to death by unidentified men at Jatiwal village in Samrala town on Saturday night. The accused dumped the farmer’s body in a room near the village’s water tank, before fleeing from the spot.

A 70-year-old farmer was allegedly hacked to death by unidentified men at Jatiwal village in Samrala town on Saturday night. The accused dumped the farmer’s body in a room near the village’s water tank, before fleeing from the spot.

The deceased was identified as Darbara Singh.

Lakhvir Singh, one of the villagers, who spotted the body in a pool of blood on Sunday morning, along with the other villagers, informed the police about the incident.

The villagers said Darbara, who owned 1.5-acres of land, used to live alone in the village, while his family was settled in Chamkaur Sahib town.

They added that Darbara was in good terms with the villagers and lived in a room near the water tank. They said Darbara had taken up the responsibility of switching on-off the motor at 6 am daily, following which water supply reached entire village.

The villagers said that on Sunday morning, when the water supply did not start as usual, they got worried and sent Lakhvir to check if things were fine.

“I found the room was bolted from outside. When I opened the door, I saw Darbara’s bloodsoaked body,” said Lakhvir.

Samrala Police, led by deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Pawanjeet Singh and station house officer (SHO) Amardeep Singh, reached the spot. The police said according to prima facie Darbara had a scuffle with the killers before his death.

“It is suspected that the killers were two or more, who overpowered Darbara and hit him with sharp-edged weapons on his head and other parts of the body,” the police added.

Meanwhile, a case under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has been registered against unidentified people.

The police have informed the family of the deceased.

The villagers also told the police that nearly a month back, Darbara was attacked by two unidentified assailants, who had their faces covered. They added that Darbara considered it an attack for robbery and did not inform the police.