A refusal to marry an already married Instagram acquaintance allegedly turned deadly for 29-year-old Punjabi singer Yashinder Kaur, known by her stage name Inder Kaur, as she was found dead on Tuesday, a week after she was kidnapped at gunpoint from Ludhiana.
Her body was recovered from Sirhind Canal in Nilun, Punjab, police said. The victim’s family claimed this The murder was orchestrated by 37-year-old Sukhwinder Singh, a man married to Moga, currently residing in Canada, after Inder rejected his marriage proposal.
So far, police have arrested Singh’s father, Pritam Singh, and his assistant, Karamjit Singh. But Sukhwinder Singh is suspected to have fled to Canada via Nepal.
She met the accused on Instagram and found out about his marriage
According to the family, Inder Kaur, who stepped away from singing five years ago to run a make-up shop and studio, befriended Sukhwinder Singh on Instagram about three years ago.
While the family was aware of this acquaintance, relations became strained after Inder discovered that Sukhwinder was already married and had two children. She refused to marry him or continue the relationship after the matter was discovered, prompting the suspect to plan to kill her.
According to the victim’s brother, Jotinder Singh, Inder had left his residence in Jamalpur Colony in Ludhiana in a white Ford Figo at 6.30pm on May 13 to buy groceries, but she never returned.
The family claimed that they learned during their own search that Sukhwinder, accompanied by his father Pritam Singh, his friend Karamjit Singh and several unknown accomplices, intercepted and kidnapped Inder Kaur at gunpoint.
The family claimed that Sukhwinder traveled from them Canada to Punjab via Nepal to carry out the crime, and hired two taxis from Moga for the kidnapping. He arrived in Nepal on 29 April and reached Punjab on 2 May.
After Inder was killed near the canal, the suspect reportedly fled back to Canada using the same transit route through Nepal.
Police recovered the decomposed body from the canal at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 19, after a report. After that, her family members identified her and took her to Ludhiana Civil Hospital for a post-mortem examination. Her Ford Figo was earlier recovered from the canal.
What did the police say?
Ludhiana Industrial Area – Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Inderjit Singh Boparai said a team has been sent to the area Sirhind Canal in Nylon recovered the body which was later verified as the missing woman. He added that the body was decomposed.
The Public Prosecution said: “We are awaiting the autopsy report to determine the causes of death.” However, police suspect that the woman was stabbed to death with sharp weapons.
The ACP said the investigation is ongoing and the police are verifying specific allegations made by the family regarding the transit route, vehicle tracking and individual roles of all the suspects named in the complaint.
The accused face charges under Sections 103 (culpable homicide), 140(1) (kidnapping or abducting any person with intent or knowledge that such person may be killed or expose him to danger of being killed) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita; Articles 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Weapons Law.
Police said more sections will be added to the FIR as the investigation progresses.
