Husband stabs wife to death; video calls mother to show the body in Punjab

Husband stabs wife to death; video calls mother to show the body in Punjab
Abbotsford: The husband of a woman who was stabbed to death in Abbotsford, B.C., has now been charged with homicide, B.C.’s Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) announced on Sunday.

The incident unfolded on Friday night around 10:50 p.m. when Abbotsford police responded to a call of an assault in progress on Wagner Drive.

When officers arrived, they found 41-year-old Balwinder Kaur, of Abbotsford, inside a home with life-threatening stab wounds. She died in hospital shortly after.

The family of the deceased woman, identified as Balwinder Kaur (41) of Mallah village of Jagraon, said that their daughter was stabbed to death by her husband Jagpreet Singh alias Raju (50), a resident of Kanchan Colony, Pakhowal road, Ludhiana. According to the deceased woman’s family, Jagpreet Singh had gone to Canada just a week ago.

Rajwinder Kaur, sister of the deceased, said: “After stabbing my sister to death, Jagpreet made a video call to his mother back home in Ludhiana and said ‘main ehnu sadaa layi sulaata (I have put her to sleep forever).”

She further said that Jagpreet was obsessed with thoughts of reaching Canada, and since Balwinder had reached there, he was forcing and harassing her to arrange his travel also at the earliest. The couple also had regular arguments related to finances as Jagpreet had stopped working and was unemployed, she added.

According to reports in the Canadian media, “Abbotsford police (AbbyPD) responded to reports of an assault in progress in a home along Wagner Drive on Friday, March 15, around 10:50 pm.” Later, they found Balwinder Kaur (41) inside the home with life-threatening stab wounds. First responders tried to save her life, but she died shortly afterwards. CBC News reported that “Balwinder Kaur’s husband Jagpreet Singh was charged with second-degree murder in relation to the fatal stabbing. He was arrested on the scene.”

Back home in Mallah village of Ludhiana’s Jagraon, Balwinder Kaur’s elderly father Himmat Singh (65) is in a state of shock. Balwinder was one of his four daughters. Once a laborer in Dubai, he is now mostly confined to bed due to health issues.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Rajwinder Kaur further said that Balwinder and Jagpreet had got married in 2000. The couple had two children – a daughter Harnoorpreet Kaur (22) and a son Gurnoor Singh (18).

Rajwinder said that Harnoorpreet had gone to Canada around four years ago on a study visa. However, she had started facing health issues.

“Then my sister Balwinder went to Canada in 2022 to take care of her daughter. However, since the time she had reached there, her husband was constantly hectoring her to call him to Canada at the earliest. My sister was taking care of all expenses alone as Jagpreet had stopped working. Earlier, he used to work as a driver, but when my sister started sending him money, he stopped working. Balwinder was not only managing the expenses of her daughter’s medical treatment and education alone but also used to send money to Jagpreet. But even then, he was harassing her to call him to Canada,” said the sister.

Rajwinder said that before going to Canada, her sister worked at a private hospital in Ludhiana to run the household. “Now she was working at a store in Canada,” she added. “She had also incurred some debt and borrowed money from her siblings to send her daughter to Canada. Even then, Jagpreet used to harass her and say that she alone would repay the debt and he won’t contribute,” added Rajwinder.

Describing the events of March 15, Rajwinder said that Jagpreet made a video call to his mother in Ludhiana. His son Gurnoor was also around. “He turned the camera towards Balwinder who was lying unconscious, with blood all around. Seeing the blood, everyone on the other side, including his mother, Gurnoor, and other family members started screaming. They asked if Balwinder was alright. Then Jagpreet said, ‘I have put her to sleep forever.’ Later, Gurnoor informed everyone and said ‘papa ne mummy numaar ditta (our father killed our mother),” said Rajwinder.

Rajwinder said that after Balwinder had reached Canada, Jagpreet had even started troubling their old father in Ludhiana. “He would badger our father to pressurize Balwinder to call him to Canada at the earliest. Yielding to his persistent pressure, Balwinder arranged for his visa and tickets despite her poor finances. We have no idea what happened that night and why he killed her even after reaching Canada. We wonder if he went to Canada just to kill her,” she added.