LONDON: A 23-year-old man was charged by a court in the United Kingdom on Wednesday of killing his wife in London. Pankaj Lamba, formerly living in Corby, was charged at Northampton Magistrates’ Court with the murder of his wife Harshita Brella, two counts of rape, sexual assault and controlling or coercive behaviour, the Crown Prosecution Service and Northamptonshire Police said in a joint statement.
Senior investigating officer detective chief inspector Johnny Campbell said, “We are committed to securing justice for Harshita and her family and continue to offer our support at this difficult time. This remains an active investigation and as such, there continue to be aspects of the case that we are unable to comment on at this time. We would urge all parties to respect the judicial process to ensure the integrity of the proceedings.” The Crown Prosecution Service said that criminal proceedings were active and defendants had the right to a fair trial.
Lamba remains on the run and hasn’t been arrested. The charges were laid in his absence. He is believed to be hiding in India and Delhi Police are looking for him. The cops arrested Lamba’s parents last week on charges of dowry harassment and sent them to judicial custody.
Last year, Brella’s family approached Delhi Police and lodged an FIR for dowry harassment against Lamba, his parents and Lamba’s sister. An FIR under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code was registered, and Lamba’s parents, Darshan Singh and Sunil, were arrested on March 14 and sent to jail.
Lamba and Brella married in court in Aug 2023, followed by a wedding in March 2024. Brella moved to the UK at the end of April 2024 to join Lamba, who was already there on a student visa and lived in a rented room in Corby. There, he also worked as a security guard, pizza delivery driver and on construction sites.
On Nov 14 last year, a murder investigation was launched after Brella’s body was found in the boot of a silver Vauxhall Corsa in Ilford. A forensic postmortem examination established that she had been strangled to death. UK detectives suspect that the woman was murdered in Corby on the evening of Nov 10 by Lamba, who then drove her body from Corby to Ilford before fleeing the country. Lamba is believed to have left Heathrow airport on Nov 11 and flown to Mumbai, arriving in India the next day and flying further to Delhi.
Brella’s family in Sadh Nagar in Palam have been frustrated by the slow pace of the investigation and lack of information. The family lawyer filed concerns in Delhi High Court that the Indian govt wasn’t following up with UK authorities on the case. Next week, there will be a second hearing when the judge will expect updates from Delhi Police and the Indian govt. On March 18, Brella’s sister, Sonia Dabas, told Channel 4 News: “Why are they not taking it seriously? Because Harshita is an Indian? That’s why. I think they are not serious about this case. It’s already been three months and I don’t see any new information.”
Reacting to the latest turn of events, Dabas told Sky News: “This is a good development in the case that the parents have been arrested and criminal investigations begun. Police have so far been sleeping and remained non-active on this case. Now that Delhi High Court has asked Delhi Police, the Union home and foreign ministries for a status report next week, they have got their act together. It was pressure from the courts (which achieved this).”
Delhi Police have also released a lookout notice for Lamba to prevent him from leaving India. “We have been demanding such a notice since Dec but it was only issued at the end of March. We have been telling them he is in India. Why was the notice so delayed?” Dabas told Channel 4 News.
Sunil Devi, Lamba’s mother, who lives in Dharouli, a village three hours north of Delhi, had earlier said that she hadn’t heard from her son since Nov 10, the day police believe Brella was murdered. Lamba phoned her to say Brella had made pakoras, which they were going to eat, and said he would call later.
Senior investigating officer detective chief inspector Johnny Campbell said, “We are committed to securing justice for Harshita and her family and continue to offer our support at this difficult time. This remains an active investigation and as such, there continue to be aspects of the case that we are unable to comment on at this time. We would urge all parties to respect the judicial process to ensure the integrity of the proceedings.” The Crown Prosecution Service said that criminal proceedings were active and defendants had the right to a fair trial.
Lamba remains on the run and hasn’t been arrested. The charges were laid in his absence. He is believed to be hiding in India and Delhi Police are looking for him. The cops arrested Lamba’s parents last week on charges of dowry harassment and sent them to judicial custody.
Last year, Brella’s family approached Delhi Police and lodged an FIR for dowry harassment against Lamba, his parents and Lamba’s sister. An FIR under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code was registered, and Lamba’s parents, Darshan Singh and Sunil, were arrested on March 14 and sent to jail.
Lamba and Brella married in court in Aug 2023, followed by a wedding in March 2024. Brella moved to the UK at the end of April 2024 to join Lamba, who was already there on a student visa and lived in a rented room in Corby. There, he also worked as a security guard, pizza delivery driver and on construction sites.
On Nov 14 last year, a murder investigation was launched after Brella’s body was found in the boot of a silver Vauxhall Corsa in Ilford. A forensic postmortem examination established that she had been strangled to death. UK detectives suspect that the woman was murdered in Corby on the evening of Nov 10 by Lamba, who then drove her body from Corby to Ilford before fleeing the country. Lamba is believed to have left Heathrow airport on Nov 11 and flown to Mumbai, arriving in India the next day and flying further to Delhi.
Brella’s family in Sadh Nagar in Palam have been frustrated by the slow pace of the investigation and lack of information. The family lawyer filed concerns in Delhi High Court that the Indian govt wasn’t following up with UK authorities on the case. Next week, there will be a second hearing when the judge will expect updates from Delhi Police and the Indian govt. On March 18, Brella’s sister, Sonia Dabas, told Channel 4 News: “Why are they not taking it seriously? Because Harshita is an Indian? That’s why. I think they are not serious about this case. It’s already been three months and I don’t see any new information.”
Reacting to the latest turn of events, Dabas told Sky News: “This is a good development in the case that the parents have been arrested and criminal investigations begun. Police have so far been sleeping and remained non-active on this case. Now that Delhi High Court has asked Delhi Police, the Union home and foreign ministries for a status report next week, they have got their act together. It was pressure from the courts (which achieved this).”
Delhi Police have also released a lookout notice for Lamba to prevent him from leaving India. “We have been demanding such a notice since Dec but it was only issued at the end of March. We have been telling them he is in India. Why was the notice so delayed?” Dabas told Channel 4 News.
Sunil Devi, Lamba’s mother, who lives in Dharouli, a village three hours north of Delhi, had earlier said that she hadn’t heard from her son since Nov 10, the day police believe Brella was murdered. Lamba phoned her to say Brella had made pakoras, which they were going to eat, and said he would call later.
