Ghaziabad: A sessions court has denied bail to an octogenarian accused of hacking his 72-year-old wife to death over suspicions about her character. While the defence argued that he had been falsely implicated, the court noted that the police diary recorded the man himself walking into the police station after allegedly killing his wife.An FIR had been registered at the Muradnagar police station on May 16. Eighty-year-old Harpal Singh’s daughter Kanchan had told the police that she and her husband were in Meerut for two days to visit her sister Jyoti. Her parents had been staying at her home for the past six months. On May 16, she was informed by a neighbour that at 4.30 am, her mother Urmila (72) was stabbed to death by her father, with a sharp-edged weapon.Upon returning from Meerut with her husband, sister Jyoti and brother-in-law Prem, she found her mother dead at the Muradnagar Govt Hospital. She also stated that there was a rift between her parents as her father was always suspicious of her mother’s character and used to argue.Counsel representing Harpal contended that the accused was innocent and was falsely implicated. “The deceased and the accused were ill and unable to function. While the deceased was around 80 years old, the accused is 85 years old, both of whom were unable to walk or see,” he said, bringing on record affidavits submitted by eight to 10 villagers stating that the two lived amicably and never fought.District govt counsel (criminal) Rajesh Chandra Sharma opposed the bail application, stating that the plaintiff in the case is the biological daughter of the deceased and the accused, making it more credible, and even the accused’s brothers have given statements against him to the investigating officer.The accused allegedly turned up at the police station voluntarily, soon after the incident, and confessed to having killed his wife.Having heard both sides, the court noted that the plaintiff stated in her statement that her father stabbed her mother multiple times on the temple and neck with a sharp weapon. Witness Rohtash, the accused’s real brother, also supported the incident and stated in his statement to police that Harpal already suspected his wife’s character, and this led to frequent arguments and disagreements between them. He further stated that on the day of the incident, the old couple and Kachan ’s children were at home. “Taking advantage of the opportunity, he struck (Bhabhi) Urmila multiple times with a sharp-edged farm tool, causing her to suffer severe injuries,” he told the police as per the case diary.The judge also referred to the post-mortem report, which clearly established that the deceased died due to ante-mortem injuries. Based on the arguments and evidence on record, the court decided to reject the bail application.Sessions Judge Vinod Singh Rawat, while not commenting on the merits of the case, said that considering all the facts, circumstances and the gravity of the crime, there are no sufficient grounds for the accused to be released on bail.
