Woman shot dead, husband held

A 47-year-old woman was gunned down, allegedly at the behest of her estranged husband, at North-West Delhi’s Samaipur Badli early on Monday morning, the police said.

Identified as Narayani Devi, the victim was sweeping a small courtyard outside her residence in the Yadav Nagar colony when two bike-borne assailants, presumably armed with country-made weapons, targeted her around 6 a.m.

Narayani’s daughters witnessed their mother being pumped by bullets before falling flat on her face even as the assailants fled. They later told the police that their father, a retired Indian Army man, who has been staying away from them for quite sometime and was involved in a property dispute with their mother, might be behind the hit.

“We have detained the victim’s husband, Lal Singh, based on the apprehensions expressed by the couple’s daughters, and are questioning him about his possible role in the incident. He has, however, been denying it since his questioning began,” said a senior police officer.

According to the police, Narayani realised that she had been attacked only when she felt the sting of a bullet on her shoulder followed by another in her back.

Meanwhile, both her daughters, who were nearby, screamed for help following which local residents gathered and rushed to Narayani’s aid. The police control room was intimated and a team was rushed to the spot.

“She was taken to a government hospital where doctors declared her dead. Her daughters gave us their statement implicating Lal Singh, who stays nearby, and he was apprehended,” the officer said.

Her husband was arrested based on the statement of their daughters who witnessed their mother being pumped by bullets