Faridabad: Woman held for killing mother-in-law over ₹30L row

A 30-year-old woman was arrested in Faridabad for allegedly strangling her mother-in-law over a land compensation dispute.

A 30-year-old woman was arrested in Faridabad on Sunday for allegedly strangling her 65-year-old mother-in-law to death in a dispute over ₹30 lakh in land acquisition compensation, police said on Monday.

Incident took place on March 16 in Sector 67; FIR under BNS murder charge filed on complaint of victim’s younger daughter-in-law. (File photo)

The accused, Poonam Devi, lived with her husband Lalit Kumar, 34, and his mother Omwati Devi, 65, at their house in Sector-67. Police said the incident took place on the afternoon of March 16 following an argument between Poonam and Omwati over compensation money and property share.

An FIR under Section 103(1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered against the couple on Saturday on a complaint filed by Omwati’s younger daughter-in-law, Mamta Devi.

According to police, Omwati owned the Sector-67 house where she lived with Poonam and Lalit, while her younger son Amit Kumar, 31, and his wife Mamta, 27, resided separately in Bheekam Colony in Ballabgarh.

Police said the Haryana government had acquired several acres of Omwati’s land in Ballabgarh in 2011 for development projects, and she was to receive around ₹30 lakh as part compensation. A Crime Branch official said Omwati intended to give the Sector-67 house to Amit and Mamta and allocate a major share of the compensation money to Amit.

“Poonam and Lalit vehemently opposed Omwati’s decision, which frequently led to arguments at home. On March 16, an argument broke out between the two, and Poonam brutally assaulted Omwati. She punched her in the chest multiple times and then throttled her to death,” the official said.

Faridabad police public relations officer Yashpal Yadav said neighbours alerted Mamta about the incident on March 16. “Mamta alerted the police the same day, suspecting that Lalit and Poonam may have murdered the woman. Investigators reached the spot to find Omwati lying on her bed with her bangles broken and their pieces pierced into her wrists,” Yadav said.

Police said Omwati was taken to Badshah Khan Civil Hospital, where doctors declared her dead. The post-mortem report confirmed homicidal death, officials said.

“There were multiple injuries on the body along with compression marks on the neck that clearly established she was murdered. Poonam was arrested from her paternal home where she had immediately shifted after Omwati’s murder,” Yadav said, adding that raids were underway to arrest Lalit.

Poonam was produced before a court on Monday and remanded to two days of police custody. Lalit remains absconding, police said.