Jassi Sindhu (right) and Mithu (left) at their wedding [photo: The Canadian Bazaar]
Jassi Sidhu was like any other 25-year-old Indo-Canadian woman from Maple Ridge, British Columbia. But her life was cut brutally short in a horrific honor killing in India plotted by her own mother and uncle in Canada in 2000.
Born in 1975, Jassi visited her mother’s ancestral village of Kaonke Khosa near Jagraon, Punjab in 1994. There she met rickshaw driver Sukhwinder ‘Mithu’ Sidhu and fell deeply in love. After returning to Canada, Jassi stayed in touch with Mithu through letters and phone calls for years. In 1999, she went back to India and secretly married Mithu on March 15 against her family’s wishes.
Upon returning to Maple Ridge, Jassi kept her marriage hidden from her orthodox Sikh family. But a year later, her mother Malkiat Kaur Sidhu and uncle Surjit Singh Badesha learned of the forbidden union. They pressured Jassi to divorce Mithu to uphold their ‘honor.’
When she refused, her mother and uncle forced her to sign false allegations of domestic abuse and immigration fraud against Mithu. But Jassi boldly reported these charges as fabricated to Indian authorities. Enraged, her family confined her to their Maple Ridge home.
With the help of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, courageous Jassi managed to escape and flew to India in May 2000. Her goal was to reunite with her beloved husband Mithu and start a new life together.
Tragically, this dream would remain unfulfilled. From the comfort of Canada, her vengeful mother and uncle had arranged a deadly contract to have Mithu and Jassi killed in Punjab for besmirching their ‘honor.’
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On June 8, 2000, just weeks after arriving in India, the newlyweds were intercepted on a scooter by four hired hitmen. They left Mithu for dead by the roadside and dragged a screaming Jassi to a remote farmhouse.
The terrified young woman was forced to call her mother in Canada as the contract killers held her hostage. When Jassi threatened to go to the police and expose her mother’s role in the plot, Malkiat Kaur Sidhu ordered the men to “take care of her.”
Following this chilling command, the hired assailants slit Jassi’s throat and mutilated her body. Her remains were dumped in a canal drain nearly 50 km away from Mithu’s village the next morning.
Mithu survived the brutal attack but Jassi’s promising life and dreams of a future with her husband were cruelly snuffed out. She was just 25 years old. The hired killers had been paid a reported Rs 7 lakh for the so-called honor killing.
Back in Canada, Jassi’s murder may have been buried and forgotten. But the ensuing police investigation and trial in India ensured some justice. Mithu’s statement and evidence of over 260 calls between Jassi’s uncle and the hitmen proved crucial.
In 2007, three of the four contract killers were sentenced to life imprisonment. But the actual masterminds behind the killing – Jassi’s mother Malkiat Kaur and uncle Surjit Singh Badesha – remained free in Canada for over a decade.
Finally, in 2012, the RCMP arrested the duo under global pressure. After a lengthy 7-year extradition battle, they were deported to India in January 2019 to face trial. However, the journalist who first exposed Jassi’s killing suspects the duo could ultimately walk free.
More than 20 years later, the haunting story of Jassi Sidhu remains one of the most shocking honor killing cases due to the direct and chilling involvement of a victim’s own mother. It serves as a tragic reminder of how ancient notions of ‘honor’ can persist even among globalized diaspora communities.
Above all, it is a story of inspiring courage – of a young woman who fought back against her oppressive family by running away for love, only to be let down by the mother who should have protected her. Jassi Sidhu’s life was cruelly robbed, but her legacy lives on.