Slaps, steel glasses, and slippers: Woman beats mother-in-law over property dispute, grandson films shocking attack

A shocking incident has come to light from Kothe village in Gurdaspur district, where a woman was caught on camera brutally attacking her elderly mother-in-law.

In a video lasting nearly a minute, which has gone viral on social media, the daughter-in-law is seen pulling her mother-in-law’s hair, slapping her repeatedly, and hitting her with steel glasses.

The assault reportedly occurred in the presence of the victim’s grandson, who recorded the entire incident on his phone. Though he can be heard pleading with his mother to stop (“Mumma, please stop”), he did not intervene to protect his grandmother.

Police sources have identified the daughter-in-law as Harjeet Kaur and the mother-in-law as Gurbhajan Kaur. The confrontation is said to have been sparked by a property dispute.

Despite the victim’s evident distress, the daughter-in-law continued the assault, hurling abusive language and at one point even attempting to hit her mother-in-law with her own slippers.

Taking suo motu notice of the video, Raj Gill, Chairperson of the Punjab State Commission for Women, on October 1 instructed the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Gurdaspur, to carry out an investigation through a senior officer and submit a detailed report within a day.

In a post on X, Raj Gill stated: “An old, helpless mother was beaten by her daughter-in-law in Gurdaspur. Suo motu action has been issued immediately and strict action will be taken. The safety, rights, and protection of elders is the Commission’s priority.”

While the police have launched a preliminary investigation and confirmed that the video will serve as key evidence, a senior Gurdaspur police officer—who requested anonymity, citing it as a “Commission matter”—said officers visited the women’s home, but the mother-in-law refused to give a statement, claiming it was a family matter and that the dispute had been internally resolved.

Family members also declined to speak to the media.

[With TOI inputs]