Punjab: Woman killed; cops claim husband shot her, made up robbery tale

SSP said the accused with his wife was coming from Chandigarh to Ludhiana via Sirhind on the night of July 29. He stopped the car on GT Road, killed his wife, and concoted the story of an attack by bike-borne miscreants.

The SSP said, “A Special Investigation Team was formed for the case, led by SP (investigation) Jagwinder Singh Cheema. During probe, it came out that Radhika Gaba had come to know about her husband’s affair and the couple would have fights over this. As part of a conspiracy, he brought his wife to Chandigarh for shopping that day and also stole the 32 bore revolver of his father. Then after shooting her, he made up a story.”

Police said during interrogation, Gaba confessed to killing his wife. He told police he had been in a relationship with a divorced woman, to whom he had said he too was divorced. However, when she found out the truth, she got engaged to another man from Muzzafarnagar. Police said Rakesh Gaba went to Muzzafarnagar with the same weapon to kill that man too, but couldn’t find him.

Police arrested Gaba on Monday and recovered the weapon. An FIR against him was registered under the sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 379 (theft), 182 (giving false information) of IPC and sections 27, 54 and 59 of Arms Act at Sadar Khanna police station.

In an FIR registered on July 30 after the incident, Gaba had claimed that they were robbed of Rs 30,000, a gold chain and a bracelet by four robbers. When his wife resisted her rings being snatched, they opened fire. Radhika died in hospital on the evening of July 30.