14-year-old girl, grandmother killed over family dispute

A 60-year-old woman and her 14-year-old granddaughter were smothered to death allegedly by their relatives in Nihal Vihar in west Delhi on Friday.

A 60-year-old woman and her 14-year-old granddaughter were smothered to death allegedly by their relatives in Nihal Vihar in west Delhi on Friday.

HT Image

The police said the murder happened in front of three other children. The children, said policemen, even tried to catch the killers who managed to flee from the spot. The children stayed close to the bodies for more than two hours, as they were too traumatised to call for help.

The incident was reported from the house of Satpal, owner of a shop at a crematorium. Satpal lived with his wife Sonia, mother Krishna and three children Nancy (14), Rishabh (11) and Isha (9). One of their relatives Ajay (16) also lived with them. The police claimed the family had a dispute with their Kurukshetra-based relatives over R3.5 lakh, and Satpal and his wife had gone to meet them to settle the issue.

“The relatives asked Satpal and his wife to come over to their place and the couple left home on Monday afternoon. After they left two other relatives Dinesh and Vicky came to Satpal’s house to talk to his mother,” said V Renganathan, deputy commissioner of police (west).

The police said the children put up a brave fight and tried to stop the killers.

“When they heard the cries coming from their grandmother’s room they bolted the front door. The accused were well acquainted with the house and managed to flee easily,” he added.

The children informed their neighbours and a call was made to the police control room.

The elderly woman and the granddaughter were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were declared dead.