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The family of a woman whose fugitive husband is still wanted for her murder has blasted the police for failing to catch her killer, saying: "We want justice." Harshita Brella, 24, was strangled at her home, having told police she was being abused by her husband, Pankaj Lamba. Lamba, 23, is under-stood to have flown to his native India three days before Harshita's body was discovered in the boot of a car. Now, one year after the murder, Harshita's mother Sudesh Kumari, has said: "Why has her killer not been caught yet? Neither the UK government nor the Indian government are doing anything." Speaking to the BBC from Delhi, she added: "I want justice for my daughter. Only then will I find peace." Harshita's body was found in the boot of a car in Ilford, east London, on 14 November 2024, a day after her family contacted UK police to say they had not heard from her since 10 November. Police believe Harshita, 24, was murdered on that day in Corby, Northamptonshire. Her husband, Pankaj Lamba, fled to India soon after the killing and is still on the run. The couple, both Indian nationals, had moved from Delhi to the UK, settling in Corby, earlier that year. In March this year, police in Northamptonshire charged him with murder. He also faces charges of rape, sexual assault and controlling or coercive behaviour. Harshita's sister Sonia Dabas is frustrated with the pace of investigations. "We are very disappointed with the UK police. Maybe because we are not citizens of the UK, that's why they are not serious about this case. They are sending out a message that foreign nationals are not safe in the UK," she told the BBC. Roughly two months before Harshita was killed, on 3 September, she had filed a case of domestic abuse against her husband. He was arrested and later released on bail on condition that he did not harass, pester or intimidate Harshita. The Domestic Violence Protection Order (DVPO) expired four weeks later, on 1 October. Sonia accuses Northamptonshire Police of being negligent in following up on the domestic abuse case. "That's when Pankaj figured out that the UK police are not really serious about this case and he felt he could get away with murder," she says. Four officers of the Northamptonshire Police are being investigated over their handling of Harshita's domestic abuse report and their interaction with her, by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). Harshita was strangled in Corby, Northants, before her body was driven to Ilford in East London the next day, according to British police. Lamba is understood to have flown to his native India from Heathrow Airport three days before Harshita's body was discovered in the boot of a Vauxhall Corsa in Ilford - where he had been seen on CCTV. According to local media reports, Lamba was caught on camera at a bank in Gurugram, a satellite city south of Delhi, in March. Lamba, wearing a face mask, withdrew the local equivalent of £3,760 from a cash machine, where he was filmed by CCTV cameras, a police source told The Indian Express. Also in March, the UK's Crown Prosecution Service decided to charge him with his wife's murder. Last week Det Supt Johnny Campbell said yesterday: "As we remember Harshita Brella on the first anniversary of her death, our thoughts very much remain with her family and all who loved her. Northamptonshire Police has provided family liaison support to Harshita's family throughout the past year. "In July, I was privileged to travel to India to meet with family members and return the personal belongings of their much loved and much missed daughter and sister."
