Ludhiana: A local court has sentenced a person to life imprisonment for the murder of his wife. The court of additional sessions judge/fast track court Sandeep Singh Bajwa also imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on the convict. On May 1, 2018, Jamalpur police had booked Varinder Arora of Mundian in Ludhiana under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code for killing his wife, Nidhi Arora.As per the prosecution, complainant Harjinder Kumar stated that his younger sister Nidhi Arora, aged about 32 years, was married 10 years ago to Varinder Arora. His sister had two daughters, aged 9 and 3 years, who study in different schools. He alleged that while his brother-in-law worked in accounts, Varinder had been harassing his sister Neelam for a long time, mainly because she had given birth to two daughters and no son. They had tried to counsel him many times. His sister often told him, his younger brother Krishan Lal, and his wife Pooja over the phone that her husband used to beat and harass her. On April 30, 2018, late at night, a serious quarrel occurred between the victim and her husband, about which she informed them. At about 12:00 noon the next day, Krishan Lal went to their house to resolve the matter. While turning toward the house from 33-Feet Road, he saw Varinder on a motorcycle. Even after noticing him, Varinder avoided him and sped away. When the brother reached the house, he saw people gathered and his sister lying unconscious on the floor. She was taken by her mother-in-law and others to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead. Following inquiries, the family became convinced that Varinder, after a quarrel, murdered her by pressing a pillow over her face before fleeing.Court Rejects Robbery AlibiPolice arrested the accused, completed the investigation, and presented a chargesheet. During the trial, the accused pleaded false implication, claiming miscreants attempted a robbery in his absence and murdered his wife during a scuffle. However, the court appreciated the evidence and observed that the accused failed to explain his presence elsewhere. His robbery theory was disbelieved, and the court noted that after his arrest, he took no steps to challenge the allegations or prove his innocence. “This shows that he failed to explain how the victim suffered her injuries or how she was smothered to death unnaturally, which strongly points to his involvement in her murder,” the court held.
