Kotfatta residents stage a sit-in demanding police action against Nirmal Kaur and her family for killing her grandchildren, in Bathinda on Thursday. Express Kotfatta residents stage a sit-in demanding police action against Nirmal Kaur and her family for killing her grandchildren, in Bathinda on Thursday. Express

A TANTRIK, Nirmal Kaur (60), along with her son Kulwinder Singh (30) and daughter-in-law Amarjeet Kaur, allegedly killed her own grandchildren – four-year-old Ranjodh and two-year-old Anamika — at home at Kotfatta village of Bathinda district on Wednesday night. The kids were tortured for three days and also not allowed to eat. And, all this was done in the belief that they were possessed by evil spirits. All three have been arrested and they would be produced in court on Friday morning. According to police, the kids’ mother, Amarjeet Kaur alias Rosy, did not shout for help even once which means that even she was convinced about her kids being possessed. And, the killings were allegedly carried out under the superstition that Nirmal Kaur’s daughter, who failed to bear a child even after six years of marriage, would become pregnant. Though the plan was also to sacrifice Amarjeet as well, police arrived in the nick of time.

What else is making news:

Confirming the incident, Kuldeep Singh, DSP Bathinda (Rural), said, “The incident is shocking indeed that the family, overcome by superstition, mercilessly murdered their own kids. Though the crime occurred yesterday night, even now, Nirmal Kaur and Kulwinder are still justifying their act, saying they did it to get rid of evil spirits inside the kids. And, the children’s mother Amarjeet Kaur is not complaining about this at all. So, we have filed an FIR with murder charges against all three. During investigation, we will find out whether the mother had any role to play.” Post-mortem of the kids was done at Bathinda civil hospital and according to Dr Gurmail Singh, medical officer, “The kids were throttled to death. Asphyxia was the cause when throttling was done. Pressure on the neck was so strong that there was a fracture of the thyroid and hyoid bones, which are deep inside the throat. Normally, these bones do not get fractured. The area near the hip was blue as if they were beaten at that part and even glass pieces were recovered from the mouths of the kids.”

Earlier, it was suspected that the kids had been electrocuted, but post-mortem has ruled that out. The kids’ bodies have been handed over to grandfather Mukhtair Singh, who used to stay apart. He was a Class IV employee at the ammunition depot. Mukhtair told police that it was sheer luck that Amarjeet was alive as she was the next target. Meanwhile, according to the police, the house was locked from inside since March 8 and no food had been cooked. Also, none of the family members ate anything, including the children. Nirmal Kaur, who has a gaddi inside her house, thought of herself to be a godwoman and convinced her son that after sacrificing the kids, all evil forces and demons inside the kids would be exorcised and she would bring them back to life again.

The DSP said, “Inside the house, we found a pit dug near the bathroom in which pictures of Mukhtair Singh had been buried as he also had been declared dead as per Nirmal Kaur. The kids had been starving for three days and they used to be beaten up with steel spoon on the hips a number of times. Also, one tubelight had been broken and its pieces stuffed into the kids’ mouths. On the last day, they were throttled. Nirmal’s son did all this along with her mother as per her instructions. Interestingly, no neighbour intervened on any of the days and when the childrfen’s cries were heard from inside on the evening of March 8, they informed police.

When we broke open the door, we found both the kids dead.” The accused will be produced in court on Friday morning. Meanwhile democratic rights organisation’s secretary Pritipal Singh has asked police to scan the role of the tantrik in this crime and also to check the advertisements of tantriks being given on many TV channels which are going unchecked and hence spreading superstition among the masses.

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Ludhiana News, download Indian Express App.