Maid arrested for strangling 60-yr-old woman to death

AFTER COMMITTING CRIME, THE ACCUSED TOOK AWAY CASH AND GOLD JEWELLERY, POLICE SAY

KAPURTHALA: Police have arrested a housemaid for allegedly killing a 60-year-old woman in the Begowal area of the city.

The crime took place on Saturday and the accused, Jaswinder Kaur, alias Sonia, 35, of Bholath was arrested on Sunday.

Police said when Amarjeet Kaur’s husband and other family members left the house, Sonia strangled her to death. She also took away cash and gold jewellery. She had been working at the victim’s house for the past several months, police said.

A case under Sections 302 (murder) and 381 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master) of the IPC was registered against the maid.

The incident has put the focus on security, specifically the vetting of housemaids, before hiring them. On February 25, a housemaid, Parveen, was arrested after she was caught in a video brutally thrashing a 19-month-old girl at Kesariwal locality in Kapurthala.

She was arrested on the complaint of the child’s father Sukhdev Singh.

Sukhdev told the police they hired Parveen at ₹1,500 per month to look after their child in their absence as both of them are working. He said the maid behaved well in their presence.

Kapurthala city SHO Gabbar Singh said the accused during her interrogation said she would beat up the child to silence her.

A case under Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 380 (theft in a dwelling unit) of the Indian Penal Code was registered against the maid.

Later, the police added Section 75 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act in FIR against the maid. The development came after the Punjab State Commission for Protection of Child Rights reprimanded the Kapurthala police for not imposing the section of the act, which is mandatory.