British-Indian jailed for attacking son-in-law with meat cleaver

London: An Indian-origin man has been jailed in the UK for more than eight years for attacking his son-in-law with a meat cleaver due to a ‘festering feud’ over a trip to India, a media report said.

Bhajan Singh, who lived with his daughter, her two children and son-in-law at his Cornwall Road home in Handsworth, swung the weapon towards the victim, aiming at his neck, the Birmingham Live reported.

The Birmingham Crown Court heard that Singh was under the influence of alcohol when he attacked his son-in-law, 30, in April last year.

The court was told that Singh worked at the same factory as his son-in-law and there had never been any problems between them.

Prosecutor Alex Warren said the victim felt a blow to the back of his neck when he was in the living room.

He initially thought the defendant had slapped him but then realised he had been cut.

The victim put up his left hand to protect himself and the meat cleaver made contact with his left palm causing it to bleed.

The attack damaged the victim’s middle finger, which required two surgeries, the court noted.

“He thought the defendant was going to kill him,” Warren told the court.

The victim escaped to a neighbour’s house who raised an alarm leading to Singh’s arrest.

Judge Sarah Buckingham said that a possible motive for the attack was a recent extended trip the defendant had made to India.

He had “reluctantly” returned to the UK and had become angry and frustrated.

“You wanted someone to blame and he (son-in-law) was your target,” Buckingham told Singh.

The judge noted that the victim was “wholly defenceless” when he was attacked from the rear.

“I have seen photos of it (meat cleaver) covered in the victim’s blood. The force of the attack was such that the wooden handle broke during the incident,” Buckingham said.