Indian-origin Woman Gets Lifer for Poisoning Lover to Death

In first such case in Britain in last 128 years, an Indian-origin woman has been sentenced to life imprisonment after she was found guilty of poisoning her former lover to death, using an ancient India herb, reported IANS.

Lakhvir Kaur Singh, a 40-year-old woman, who has three children was served a life term for killing her ex-lover Lakhvinder Cheema, 39, and leaving his fiancé seriously ill after lacing their curry with Aconite – a poison that finds a mention in ancient Indian texts, said report.

It may be mentioned that Indian Aconite, called ‘queen of poisons’, is found in the Himalayan foothills and known in Inida as Halahal, the poison, which, according to mythology , turned Shiva’s neck blue.

The last time some one was convicted of using poison in England was in an infamous case surrounding the murder of an 18-year-old man by his brother-in-law, a doctor named George Henry Lamson, who was hanged in April 1882.

Report said that Cheema, also called Lucky, was blinded and paralysed while his fiancé, Gurjeet Choough, now 22, fell into a coma after consuming the poisoned curry in January last year.

On Wednesday, a London court heard how Lakhvir, consumed with jealously, attained herb from India and then got access to Lucky’s house, where she put the poison into the curry, said report.

Lakhvir and Lucky had been lovers for around 15 years before Lucky was engaged to Gurjeet, whom Lakhmir accused of seeking to marry Lucky only to get residence in Britain, said report.

The court was told that Gurjeet and Lucky fell violently sick after consuming the curry, with paralysis taking hold very quickly. They had both lost their sight and were losing the use of their limbs – by the time they reached the hospital Lucky was completely paralysed. He died within an hour of being admitted. Gurjeet was put into a medical coma and recovered two days later.

Lakhvir was arrested Jan 28, 2009, and a small packet of the poison was found in her coat pocket and another in her handbag. Expert forensic analysis identified that Aconite was present in both of the victims and the remains of the curry they ate.

Lakhvir claimed she used it for a herbal remedy for a skin complaint by mixing it with cow’s urine.