Indian held in Moscow for killing wife

Tea merchant Sajjan Sharma was taken into custody along with his father for killing his wife for dowry.

The Moscow-based husband and father-in-law of Ranchi girl Ambika Sharma, who was killed, allegedly for dowry, in the Russian capital, have been arrested from the airport here just as they arrived with the body.

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Tea merchant Sajjan Sharma, 32, and his septuagenarian father Mohanlal were taken into custody as they landed at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport (NSCBI) on Wednesday.

They were arrested on charges by Ambika's family. According to them, Ambika, who died after falling from the kitchen window of her tenth floor apartment in Moscow on July 25, was actually murdered for dowry.

The parents were told about her death on the night of July 25 by a man identifying himself as Ambika's neighbour.

"We have arrested Sajjan and his father following a complaint from Ambika's father Dindayal, who alleged that his daughter was tortured for dowry and killed," said Praveen Kumar, superintendent of police (North 24-Parganas).

Ambika, the mother of two-year-old twins, got married to Sajjan on April 3, 2003.

Sajjan's parents live in Kolkata's Dum Dum area and Ambika's in Ranchi.

Police here said they were contacting their counterparts in Moscow through the union home ministry and the ministry of external affairs to get details of the incident.