E-Paper
Ludhiana: Accused who dumped woman’s body near Aarti Chowk arrested
According to the police, the accused suspected the woman’s character and strangled her to death when she refused to obey them; a video of the accused dumping the body in sack went viral
A day after a woman’s body, stuffed in a sack, was dumped by two bikers near the busy Aarti Chowk, the police arrested her in-laws and a relative for the murder on Thursday. The arrests took place after the accused’s landlord, who had seen that sack before the accused left on a bike to dump it on Wednesday, came across viral videos of the sack on social media and informed the police.
The accused have been identified as her father-in-law Krishan, mother-in-law Dulari and a relative, Ajay. Krishan works as a security guard.
According to the police, the accused suspected the woman’s character and strangled her to death when she refused to stay at home. The victim, identified as Reshma, a native of Uttar Pradesh, was reportedly murdered on Tuesday night in her rented accommodation in Maharaj Nagar.
According to deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Rupinder Singh, the motive behind the murder was a domestic discord. “Her in-laws admitted that they were angry because she routinely left the house without permission and returned late at night, around 10 pm or 11 pm. They said this behaviour caused frequent arguments,” he said.
After allegedly killing her, Krishan and Ajay placed Reshma’s body in a sack, wrapped it in cloth, loaded it on a motorcycle and headed towards Ferozepur Road. Near Aarti Chowk, the sack fell on the road all of a sudden when the pillion rider, said to be Krishan, fled the scene. Ajay, who was on driver’s seat, loaded the sack onto his bike and left only to return moments later and dump it there. However, street vendors and onlookers confronted him for dumping the sack there. When asked, the accused gave bizarre replies, claiming it contained rotten mangoes or a dead dog. Someone from the onlookers touched the sack and felt limbs. It was then the accused, while pretending to make a phone call, fled the scene while leaving his bike on the spot.
The suspicious locals opened the sack and discovered a woman’s body inside. Bystanders had already recorded videos of the confrontation, which quickly went viral on social media and helped the police in tracing the accused. The accused’s landlord came across the videos and informed the police. He informed that he had witnessed a heated argument between Reshma and her in-laws the day before the murder. The next morning, he noticed a suspicious sack near the main gate of their rented accommodation but assumed it contained household items, as the family had plans to vacate. It wasn’t until the viral videos surfaced that he realised the horror.
Deceased Reshma’s husband was not living with her at the time of the murder. He remains in Uttar Pradesh. Reshma had recently moved to Ludhiana with her in-laws as the couple reportedly had a strained relationship. Her in-laws often accused her of defiance and inappropriate conduct, the police said.
The bike used in the crime was initially suspected to be stolen, but the police later confirmed that Krishan had legally purchased it second-hand from Sunet area. The police have registered an FIR under Sections 103 (murder) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at the division number 8 police station. Investigations are ongoing and further questioning of the accused is underway to determine if more people are involved in the crime.
