US woman who wanted to marry Punjab man burnt to death in Ludhiana

Ludhiana: A 71-year-old US woman who arrived in India to marry a man in Punjab was allegedly killed, police said on Wednesday.

Rupinder Kaur Pandher came to Ludhiana from Seattle at the invitation of Charanjit Singh Grewal, an England-based non-residential Indian (NRI).

Grewal, originally from Ludhiana, was to be her bridegroom, police said.

The 75-year-old allegedly had her killed shortly after she arrived here in July.

Pandher's sister, Kamal Kaur Khairah tried to reach out to Pandher on July 24 but found her phone switched off.

Concerned about her whereabouts, Khairah sought the help of the US embassy in New Delhi to alert the local police.

Last week the Khairah family to a great shock received the news of Pandher's death.

Following investigation, police arrested Sukhjeet Singh Sonu of Malha Patti for the killing Pandher.

Sonu admitted to killing the US citizen on the instructions of Grewal and burned the body in the storeroom of his house.

Sonu reportedly committed the crime after Grewal promised him Rs 50 lakh.

The motive behind the crime according to the police was financial as Pandher had transferred huge amount of money to Grewal before she had arrived in India.

Grewal, according to Deputy Inspector General (Ludhiana Police Range) Satinder Singh, is named as a suspect in the case.

Police are searching for the skeletal remains of the victim.