Sarbjit Kaur Athwal - Shamed: The Honour Killing That Shocked Britain—by the Sister Who Fought for Justice

CONTENTS

It began one normal, Friday afternoon. Just another family gathering at our house in west London. Perched on the sofa sat my mother-in-law. She stared proudly around, smiling, and then spoke.
Its decided then, the old lady announced. We have to get rid of her.

Her was Surjit Athwal, Sarbjits sister-in-law. She was lured to India, strangled and dumped in the fast-flowing Ravi River; never to be seen again.

Only Sarbjit seemed horrified by her fate. Surrounded by murderers, she knew she had to fight for justice but how? And at what risk?

This is her shocking story.

Sarbjit Kaur Athwal is a British Indian, whose sister-in-law Surjit was the victim of an honour killing. Sarbjit secretly and bravely campaigned for justice for Surjit, seeking murder convictions for her husbands mother and brother. They were jailed, but Sarbjit continues to receive death threats and ostracisation by the Sikh community.

She has since become a police community support officer, in gratitude for the staunch support of Detective Chief Inspector Clive Driscoll.

For Surjit

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First published in the United Kingdom in 2013 by Virgin Books,
an imprint of Ebury Publishing

A Random House Group Company

Copyright 2013 Sarbjit Kaur Athwal with Jeff Hudson

Foreword copyright 2013 Clive Driscoll

Sarbjit Kaur Athwal has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

Every reasonable effort has been made to contact copyright holders of material reproduced in this book. If any have inadvertently been overlooked, the publishers would be glad to hear from them and make good in future editions any errors or omissions brought to their attention.

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In 1998, a young English girl left her home and never returned.

Her only crime was refusing to live the lifestyle imposed upon her by purveyors of extremist religious views. One could argue that these views were just a personal interpretation of what is, in fact, a gentle religion. I have always found it insulting that Sikhism is tarnished by the behaviour of some of its followers; the vast majority of religious people I have met of all denominations are kind and live a peaceful and good life.

Regrettably, in my time as a police officer, I have investigated criminals who have hidden behind the face of religion and used that religion to mask their criminal activity. I think it is essential that the police follow the integrity of the investigation at all times and search for the truth above all other considerations.

Make no mistake: Honour Based Violence (HBV) is a blight on society. For young people to be threatened or tricked into a path that they do not wish to follow offends their basic human rights. The act of murder carried out as punishment for not obeying anothers religious principles must always be wrong and in my opinion a priority for any police force, no matter where they are in the world. And that stands even in this age of austerity, when all police services in the UK face severe financial restriction. Murder and other serious crime, and protection of the public, should be the priority.

For we know that the threat of detection and conviction remains a big deterrent in preventing these awful crimes.

My son is a Royal Marine Commando who fought in many recent campaigns, and lost many of his colleagues. The bravery these young men and women show, every day, is an inspiration to me. However, the courage that Sarbjit Kaur Athwal, the author of this book, showed by coming forward as a witness makes her equally as brave and inspirational to me as the very brave young men and women who serve this country. And that goes not just for Sarbjit, but also other witnesses who have placed truth and real honour first, coming forward to give evidence in HBV cases. To me, their courage matches that shown by troops in our armed forces, and by the young men and women who protect our streets while patrolling as police officers.

The pressure Sarbjit faced in the lead-up to the criminal trial cannot be underestimated: the intimidation she faced verbally and via her children, who were used as pawns against her. The methods employed were, in my view, similar to the intimidation techniques that criminal networks employ.

But she stood firm and did her Sikh duty.

I hope the readers of this book will accept from me that this witness, and one other who cannot be named for legal reasons, were absolutely pivotal in my investigation.

In addition, I would like to thank Mr Jagdeesh Singh and Surjits mother and father for the help, support and encouragement they gave me during the investigation.

I would also like to thank personally all of the officers who worked on Operation Yewlands. There is little doubt the police performed some duties well, and some duties we wish we had done to higher standards. However, the dedication these officers showed culminated in the successful prosecution of Bachan Kaur Athwal and Sukhdave Singh Athwal.

It has been a privilege to act as a Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) on all of my murder cases and I thank the Metropolitan Police for allowing me this honour.

I also thank the publishers of Shamed for asking me to write this foreword.

DCI Clive Driscoll, 2013

(SIO Operation Yewlands)

It looked like just another family gathering. An ordinary lounge in an ordinary house on an ordinary street in west London. But there was nothing ordinary about what happened next.

Two brothers and a sister-in-law me waited, poised to hear why wed been summoned. All eyes were on the elderly matriarch perched on the sofa, between her doting sons. Pious-looking and respectfully dressed for prayer, she stared proudly around the room, smiled at her boys, and then spoke.

Its decided then, the old lady announced. We have to get rid of her.

My sister-in-law is going to die.

Its a feast of the senses. The air is filled with incense and the aromas of a busy kitchen. Brightly dressed women jostle for position with men wearing colourful turbans, their long beards trailing down their chests. The sound of their rapid-fire conversation is punctuated by frequent bursts of laughter between mouthfuls of chapatti and sips of chilled lassi. Its a typical day of celebration for the local Sikh community but despite Punjabi being the only language used, the gathering is a long way from Amritsar or Chandigarh. Its in Hounslow, west London. And they are there to welcome a new arrival.