Local Punjabi singer Yashinder Kaur, alias Inder, 29, from Ludhiana, was allegedly abducted and murdered by her Canada-based friend and his associates, who later dumped her body in a canal. Her decomposed body was recovered from the Neelon canal Tuesday, six days after she went missing.

The prime accused, identified as Sukhwinder Singh, alias Sukha, a native of Mahlan Khurd village in Punjab’s Moga district, orchestrated a planned journey from Canada to execute the crime, said Inderjit Singh Boparai, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Ludhiana Industrial Area-A.

“He first landed in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 30 and then further travelled to India. After executing the murder, he fled back to Canada as per the interrogation of his aides,” ACP Boparai told The Indian Express.

The Ludhiana police have arrested two people in connection with the crime: Sukhwinder’s father Pritam Singh and an accomplice, identified as Karamjit Singh of Bhaloor village in Moga.

Sukhwinder allegedly abducted Yashinder at gunpoint on May 13 and then killed her. Sukhwinder and Karamjit then allegedly dumped her body in the Neelon canal.

Inspector Dalvir Singh, Station House Officer, Jamalpur police station, said Sukhwinder’s air ticket from Canada to Kathmandu (Nepal) was booked for April 29. “After reaching India on May 2, he executed the murder on May 13 before again fleeing to Kathmandu the same night,” said the SHO, adding that the woman’s Ford Figo car, which she was driving when she was allegedly abducted, has also been recovered from the canal.

According to the police, Yashinder and Sukhwinder, whose wife is in Canada, connected on Instagram around six years ago when Yashinder was actively pursuing projects in the Punjabi music industry. The two eventually entered into a relationship.

However, Yashinder later learned that Sukhwinder was already married and had two children. She wanted to end the relationship but Sukhwinder wanted to marry her. Refusing to accept the breakup, Sukhwinder allegedly plotted her murder from Canada.

The incident first came to light when Yashinder’s younger brother Jotinder Singh, a resident of Mundian Kalan, filed an abduction complaint on May 14 at the Jamalpur police station.

In his statement to the police, Jotinder said his sister had left the house in her Ford Figo car at around 8.30 pm on May 13 to buy groceries but did not return. He named Sukhwinder in the initial complaint, stating that the accused had previously threatened his sister and had likely abducted her due to her refusal to marry him.

The Jamalpur police initially registered an FIR against Sukhwinder and Karamjit Singh under Section 140(1) (kidnapping) and Section 3(5) (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), alongside Sections 25, 27, 54, and 59 of the Arms Act.

ACP Boparai said the cause of death will be determined after the autopsy report is received. “It is still unconfirmed whether she was shot or attacked with sharp-edged weapons. Murder charges have been added to the FIR,” he said.

Yashinder was the eldest of the three siblings. Her brothers, Jotinder Singh and Gurinderpal Singh, run an iron business in Ludhiana while their parents live abroad.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Gurinderpal said his sister and Sukhwinder knew each other for 6-7 years and had started talking via social media. “Sukhwinder lives in Canada’s Calgary and runs a construction business. They decided to get married. We reached out to Sukhwinder’s parents, who lied and told us that he was unmarried. On Sukhwinder’s asking, she had quit singing but was now planning a comeback in the music industry,” said, Gurinderpal.

He claimed that after abducting Yashinder, the accused shot her dead before dumping the body in canal.

“Police are probing the case at snail’s pace. Multiple accused are involved in this conspiracy,” said Gurinderpal.

He appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah “to repatriate my sister’s killer from Canada and make him face trial for the heinous crime he has committed”.