Hired 5 days back, domestic help assaults woman, robs house

Mohali: A domestic help hired barely five days ago allegedly attacked his employer and decamped with cash, gold and silver jewellery, and a mobile phone from a house in a society in Kharar. The injured woman, Shabnam, is undergoing treatment at a private hospital.

Police have registered a case against the accused, identified as Hira Lal Sahni alias Harry, a native of Bihar, and launched a manhunt.

According to the complainant, Sabir, he and his wife have been living in the society for several years and run an ayurveda clinic near Nijjar Chowk. He told police that on May 14, around 6.30am, he left for the gym while his wife was asleep and the domestic help was working in the kitchen.

When he returned around 8am, the servant was missing and the bedroom door was locked from inside. He heard his wife crying for help. With assistance from neighbours, Sabir broke open the latch and found her lying in a pool of blood in the bathroom, with bloodstains across the bedroom.

He told police that Shabnam had suffered serious head injuries and said the accused had struck her with a rolling pin before fleeing with valuables from the house.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the couple had hired the accused days earlier after meeting him at a roadside eatery near Nahan while travelling. The accused had reportedly complained of low wages and difficult working conditions, following which Shabnam offered him work at their clinic and residence.

Police said the accused later contacted her seeking money for travel to Chandigarh, which was sent to him. Upon arrival, he was allowed to stay temporarily at the house until alternate accommodation could be arranged. He subsequently began assisting with household and clinic work.

Police are scanning CCTV footage and conducting raids to trace the accused, who remains at large.