Harshita Brella’s family relive her final days in UK, call for justice

The 24-year-old woman’s body was found in the boot of a car in Ilford in November 2024, and her husband Pankaj Lamba remains at large on charges of murder.

Harshita’s father Satbir Singh Brella, mother Sudesh Kumari and sister Sonia Dabas traveled to her home in Corby, Northamptonshire, where she is believed to have been strangled before her body was found in London four days later.

“It was a heartbreaking visit for us because it felt like the Hashta was watching us from somewhere nearby and then suddenly appeared and welcomed us with a warm smile,” Dabas told PTI.

“We want to honor her at the place where she took her last breath. I don’t wish this pain and grief on anyone. We are here to seek justice for Hachita at all costs.”

She said: “Many mistakes have been made, but now is the time to right them and ensure that no other young girl suffers a similar tragedy due to breaches of rules and regulations. My sister’s killer must be arrested and brought to justice as soon as possible.”

The Derry family’s trip to the UK is being supported by UK women’s rights group Ms India and Northamptonshire Rights and Equality Council.

ILUK founder Poonam Joshi said: “Abuse of Indian migrant women like Harshita Brella is rife in the UK, as demonstrated by ILUK’s work with hundreds of such victims over the years.”

She said: “These victims are left completely isolated when traveling to the UK, with little or no access to the support that Hashita and others so desperately need.”

The couple married in India in August 2023, and Brela moved to Corby in England’s East Midlands region in April 2024 to join her husband.

Within months she lodged a domestic violence report with authorities and her body was found six weeks after the expiry of a one-month domestic violence protection order issued by Northamptonshire Police against Pankaj Lamba.

A review by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found that four officers from the force should face misconduct proceedings for their handling of the case.

A series of CCTV images of Lamba released by police showed that the murder took place at Brera’s home in Corby on November 10 and that her body was transported to London, about 145 kilometers away, before he abandoned the car and fled the country.

The inquest recorded the provisional cause of her death as “manual strangulation pending toxicological and histological tests”.

Lamba, 23, is accused of murdering his wife and also faces charges of rape, sexual assault and controlling or coercive behavior. He remains at large and there have been reports of sightings in and around Delhi.

The victims’ families have called on British authorities to cooperate with Indian authorities to arrest the accused and extradite him to the UK to face trial.

This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.