B.C. mother arrested in slaying of daughter in India

A B.C. woman and her brother have been arrested in connection with the 2000 slaying of the woman's daughter, Jassi Sidhu, andthe attempted murder of the young woman's husbandin India in what has been described as an honour killing.

Malkit Kaur Sidhu, 63, and Surjit Singh Badesha, 67, Jassi Sidhu'suncle, werearrested Friday in the Vancouver suburb of Maple Ridge.

The two were taken into custody after the B.C. Supreme Court issued arrest warrants under the Extradition Act and will be held pending an extradition hearing, said Cpl. Annie Linteau.

The events surrounding Jassi Sidhu's death have been extensively reported by the CBC-TV investigative news program, The Fifth Estate.

Four other people have already been convicted in India of murder, attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in connection with Jassi Sidhu's slaying and the attempted murder of her husband, Mithu Sidhu.

The 25-year-old woman,a Canadian citizen and resident of Maple Ridge, was killed in Punjab, India, and her husband was seriously injured in the same attack in June 2000.

Jassi Sidhu had met her future husband during a visit to the Punjabi village where her parents were born, butaccording to court testimony,the man had no money,no property and his only income came from driving a small taxi called an auto rickshaw.

The Fifth Estate reportedthat Sidhu knew that her wealthy Canadian family would never approve of her choice of husband, so the couple married in secret, enraging some members of her family.

Linteau said RCMP officers have been involved in the investigation since 2004, when contacted by police in India, and made several trips to the Punjab as part of their inquiries.