Family of Doraha man killed in Italy seek justice

Lovleen Bains

Doraha, December 3

November 25 was a black day for Sukhwinder Kaur and her four children. The letter they were handed over stated that Hoshiar Singh, Sukhwinder’s husband, was no more. He had been murdered in Italy on February 10.

Hoshiar Singh, 40, ran a photo shop in Doraha before shifting to Italy in 2008. Even while away, he continued to support his family back home. He visited India in 2017 and then again next year in March. Hoshiar left for Italy on April 6 last year.

Sukhwinder said, “God has been unkind to us. My husband was very satisfied when he came to India and we all were happy. We were getting regular financial support from him. Two of my daughters — Manpreet and Lovepreet — are married and one is pursing her education. My son is in Class X.”

“I received a letter from the Government of Italy on November 25. Since I am uneducated, I asked one of my relatives to translate it for me. It was a bolt from the blue…my whole world came crashing down. A volley of questions crossed my mind. I immediately recalled the last conversation I had with my husband on February 7. If I knew it was the last conversation with my life partner, I would have prolonged it,” said Sukhwinder.

“After more than nine months we are being informed that my husband has been murdered. Where was the Italian police for so long? Our government should now act stern and ask the Italian government to initiate a probe into the case,” said the wailing wife. “The breadwinner of our family is no more. We demand adequate compensation for the irreparable loss,” she said.

Jobandeep, Hoshiar Singh’s son, said, “On February 7, my father had asked me not to disturb him as he was upset. He had an altercation with his owner and had also lost his ATM. He, however, sent me a video which I failed to download. After this, we received no call from him. We tried our best, but to no avail. We finally posted his photo on Facebook to trace him. When we received the letter on November 25, we were dumbfounded”

Hardeep Singh Cheema, Payal DSP, said Payal SDM Sagar Setia was communicating with the Consulate General of India, Milan. Setia said they received a letter from the Consulate General of India, Milan, which had been contacted by the local authorities in Italy that an Indian national, Hoshiar Singh, had been murdered in Padova on February 10.