Parents shot in honour killing

Police suspect the girl’s brother is involved in the murders of Sharda Prasad Tiwari (45) and his wife Shobha (40). The murders took place hours before the victims,along with their son Durgesh,were to attend a hearing in a Karkardooma court on whether the girl,now over 18 years of age,and Durgesh can live together as a married couple.

At present,the girl is living in her village Khoda Bacheri,Uttar Pradesh. Durgesh works in Jammu and had come to Delhi at around 3 am on Wednesday to attend the hearing,police said.

According to police,the accused intended to kill Durgesh,but could not find him as he had locked himself in a room. They shot his parents at point-blank range around 6.15 am and escaped from the congested locality without being caught,police added.

Durgesh’s younger brother Prabhat (18) was sleeping in his room and woke up after hearing the gunshots. He has reportedly told police that he saw Durgesh locking the room’s door from inside.

“Durgesh works as a salesman in Jammu and had come to Delhi for the hearing. He went out to buy milk in the morning and saw the girl’s brother walking towards the house with two men. Scared,he rushed inside and asked our mother to close the door. While she was doing so,the accused walked in and shot her in the verandah. Then they came upstairs and shot our father,” said Prabhat.

The couple had eloped in December last year after which the girl’s family had registered a case of kidnapping against Durgesh. The girl was a minor then. After she turned 18,Durgesh and his family moved court for a reconciliation,police said.

“It has not been substantiated yet whether the accused also wanted to kill Durgesh,but it is sure that they had come with an intention to kill his parents,” said a police officer.

Police said the accused used a country-made weapon.