A Mohali court has sentenced Seerat Kaur, 45, to rigorous life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 90,000 for murdering her husband, Ekam Singh Dhillon and hatching a criminal conspiracy to eliminate him in a sensational 2017 case.
Phase-3B1 resident Ekam Singh Dhillon, a businessman, was found shot dead, with his body packed in a suitcase and placed in the boot of his BMW car on March 19, 2017.
Complainant Darshan Singh Dhillon, a builder, stated that his elder brother Ekam had been living separately with his wife of 10 years in Chandigarh along with their two children, aged 11 and 5, and later at Phase-3B1 for 8–10 days.
The complainant further stated that Ekam was involved in a commercial property business and had purchased property near Gurgaon and Mullanpur worth around Rs 5 crore, which he got registered in the name of his mother-in-law, and that the entire amount was lying in her bank account. He alleged that his wife Seerat Kaur, along with her mother Jaswinder Kaur and brother Vinay Pratap Singh, conspired to kill him for his money and properties. After the murder, they allegedly attempted to dispose of the body by placing it inside a suitcase and keeping it in the car.
Counsel Terminder Singh said, “Based on CCTV footage of the house and statement of autorickshaw driver Tull Bahadur who stated that he was asked by Seerat to help her put the suitcase in the car, blood was oozing out of the suitcase. Deceased’s son gave a statement that he heard a gunshot sound after his parents were arguing over Nimrat (Seerat’s acquiantance) in the house with a confrontation between his parents at night on March 18. Call detail records, the salon where Seerat had gone to get her hair washed after the murder and other things were put on record.”
Accused Seerat Kaur, 45, the niece of Congress leader Ajit Inder Singh Mofar, the two-time MLA from Sardulgarh, is presently lodged in jail. A 9mm pistol licensed in Seerat’s name was used in the crime, police said.
Police said a shot was fired at Ekam, which hit him near the ear and passed through. Investigators further claimed that Seerat and others had planned to dispose of the body in a canal. However, the plan failed as the car key was misplaced, preventing them from moving the vehicle, police added.
The deceased’s father, Jaspal Singh Dhillon, suspected that more than one person was involved in the crime, stating it would not have been possible for a single individual to move the suitcase containing the body down from the first floor.
Ekam had earlier set up stone crushers and later ventured into the hotel business.
Police had registered a case under Sections 302, 120B and 201 of the IPC, along with provisions of the Arms Act, at Mataur police station, and arrested Seerat on March 19, 2017, a day after the murder.
