British-Sikh woman in UP gets death penalty for killing NRI husband

Hours after her sentencing, the woman said she is being “framed” by her husband’s family members. She will appeal against the capital punishment.

A court in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur awarded death penalty to British citizen Ramandeep Kaur for murdering her NRI husband with the help of a friend seven years ago.

UP court order: British-Sikh woman gets death penalty for killing NRI husband

Her friend and accomplice Gurpreet was sentenced to life imprisonment with a fine of ₹3 lakh.

Sukhjeet Singh (34), was sleeping with his sons Arjun and Aryan, when he was killed by Kaur and Gurpreet, additional district government counsel Shree Pal Verma said on Saturday. Arjun told the court during a hearing that his mother smothered Sukhjeet with a pillow and then, Gurpreet hit him with a hammer on his head. Then, Gurpreet took out a knife from his pocket and gave it to Kaur, who slit her husband’s throat, Verma said citing Arjun’s testimony.

The prosecution said Sukhjeet, his wife, and sons Arjun Aryan visited his native place in Shahjahanpur in August 2016. Gurpreet, from Punjab, also an NRI, accompanied them. Sukhjeet was found murdered in the house on September 2, 2016.

Hours after her sentencing, Kaur said she is being “framed” by her husband’s family members, a jail official said on Sunday.

Kaur said she will appeal against the capital punishment, according to the official.

Superintendent of Shahjahanpur district jail Mijaji Lal on Sunday said two female inmates of the jail and a woman constable have been deployed to monitor Kaur.

When she was asked why she committed the murder, Kaur said her husband wanted to sell his entire property and move to England, so his family members killed him and wrongly framed her, according to the jail official.

“She said that she is innocent, and she will appeal against the capital punishment,” Lal said.

Reacting to the verdict, Sukhjeet’s mother Vanshjeet Kaur had told reporters on Saturday, “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.”