Man shot, woman hurt in ‘honour killing’

In a case of suspected honour killing, family members of a woman, who had eloped with a married man in June last year, shot the man and injured the woman critically when they were walking home, in Shahabad area of Rampur district late on Wednesday evening.

The woman, who suffered injuries on the head from sharp-edged weapons and blunt objects, is battling for life at a hospital in Meerut. Both the man and woman belonged to the same community.

Rampur SP Preetinder Singh said the incident took place when Shamshir Hussain, 35, of Chaksari village was walking home with Pheema, 22. The couple was accompanied by Shamshir's maternal uncle Akbar Hussain and aunt Akhtari Begum.

They were about one kilometre short of their village when Pheema's brothers Nadeem and Waseem, cousins Babbu and Kasib and maternal uncle Nazim allegedly attacked Shamshir with sharp-edged weapons and sticks. As Pheema tried to rescue him, they hit her too, leaving her critically injured.

Shamshir's uncle and aunt reportedly fled in panic. The assailants allegedly shot Shamshir in the chest, killing him on the spot, and then ran away. They are all absconding.

When Akbar Hussain returned to the spot with Shamshir's father and other relatives, he was already dead. Pheema was rushed to the Moradabad district hospital from where she was referred to Meerut.

Akbar Hussain said Shamshir had four children with his first wife, Armana. In June last year, he eloped with Pheema and started living in Akbar Hussain's house at Sambhal.

Hussain said Shamshir had got his marriage with Pheema registered in Sambhal about three months ago.

The SP said Pheema's family had disowned her. Shamshir and Pheema had started visiting the village about two months ago, but her family had never tried to contact them.

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