By IANS
Vancouver : An Indo-Canadian man facing trial for killing his pregnant wife in the city of Surrey has been denied bail by a court here.
Mukhtiar Singh Panghali faces second-degree murder charge for killing his wife, Manjit Panghali, in October 2006.
Denying him the bail, judge said the accused couldn’t be let out for maintaining public confidence in the justice system.
Thirty-year-old Manjit Panhgali, who had met Mukhtiar at the University of British Columbia and married him in 1996, was four-month pregnant with her second child when she went missing Oct 18, 2006.
She had gone for her yoga class and was never seen again, though her car was found abandoned.
A week later, her charred body was located at a place frequented by revellers for drinking and making bonfires in the Delta area.
The suspicion immediately fell on Mukhtiar and her brother-in-law Sukhwinder who lived with the couple.
The husband reported the matter to police 26 hours after she went missing, which raised suspicions about his hand in the murder.
There was also tension in the family, as Manjit didn’t want Sukhwinder, who was facing criminal charges for harassing his former girlfriend, to stay with them.
However, he moved out on his own before her murder.
Both the men were later arrested.
Sukhwinder, who faces charges of interfering with the body and attempting escape from jail and hurting the police officer on duty, got bail last year.
A teacher at a local school, Manjit left behind a three-year-old daughter Maya who is in the custody of her sister Jasmin Bhambra.
Bhambra has launched a web site signature campaign seeking a law recognizing unborn babies, who are injured or killed in attacks on their moms, as separate individuals.
If such a bill is enacted, criminals will face two murder charges, rather than one.
She says her campaign is in support of the Unborn Victims of Crime Bill, proposed by Edmonton MP Ken Epp.