Mother of accused among 2 women booked

: A day after Tanda resident Joginder Singh set his neighbour's house afire on Sunday killing an 11-month old child and his mother, the police also booked the accused's mother and another woman of Dhuria village for their alleged connivance in the crime on the statement of the deceased's grandfather, Lachhman Singh.

In his statement, Lachhman Singh said that Joginder Singh had attacked his family due to personal enmity. Besides Joginder, he had named his (Joginder’s) mother Gian Kaur and one Gurmit Kaur, who, as per sources, is mother-in-law of deceased Rajwant Kaur. It has emerged from the police investigation that after leaving her in-laws’ house in Dhuria, Rajwant had been staying with Lachhman's son Kuldip Singh for the past about three years. The 11-month-old child, who died in the fire, was of Rajwant while the other two kids injured in the mishap are from Kuldip's estranged wife.

Dhurian sarpanch Bhupinderjit Kaur confirmed that deceased Rajwant had not divorced her husband. SSPJ Elanchazhian said that though a case has been registered against the two women, but their complicity in the crime is under investigation.

Meanwhile, the condition of two of the three other fire victims, admitted to the CMCH and the DMCH, Ludhiana, is stated to be critical. Accused Joginder Singh is also admitted in the civil hospital here with burn injuries. On Sunday, he feigned having consumed celphos tablets whereas it came out to be a ploy to gain public sympathy. The moment he is discharged , he will be taken in custody, the police said.