Eight, including panchayat members, booked for abetting woman’s suicide in Ludhiana

The case has been lodged on the victim’s husband’s complaint, who alleged that the accused had humiliated the woman over a chunk of land, which forced her to take the extreme step.

Eight persons, including the sarpanch and panchayat secretary of Balliyewal village, have been booked for abetment after a 38-year-old woman ended her life on Tuesday.

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The accused have been identified as panchayat secretary Makhan Singh, village residents Bhola, his wife Nimma, Peet and Binda. The sarpanch and another panchayat member have not been identified by name in the FIR.

The case has been lodged on the victim’s husband’s complaint, who alleged that the accused had humiliated the woman over a chunk of land, which forced her to take the extreme step.

He alleged that the panchayat had given him a piece of land, on which he set up a cattle shed. Some residents of the village wanted to build a temple on the land and asked him to shift the cattle shed elsewhere. When he refused, the accused barged into his house on October 1 and threatened him. The next day, he went to the police station to lodge a complaint but found that the accused had already filed a complaint against him. When he returned home, the accused again reached there and humiliated his wife. Unable to bear this, the woman hanged herself.

Assistant sub-inspector Baldev Singh, who is investigating the case, said that an FIR under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered at the Koomkalan police station. The police will arrest the accused soon.