Chandigarh, Dec 4 (IANS): A sacked Chandigarh police constable and his woman accomplice were Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment by a court for murdering a police officer in June this year.

District and Sessions Judge S.K. Aggarwal sentenced Basant Singh, alias Bunty, 26, and Sarita Rani, 23, to life imprisonment following their conviction Tuesday after a trial lasting over five months.

Basant and Sarita, who is seven months pregnant, were convicted for the murder of Chandigarh Police inspector Sucha Singh while he was on duty.

Just days before killing the police officer, Basant had allegedly killed a mother-son duo in Haryana's Sonipat district April 18. He had been on the run ever since with Sarita.

He had killed 55-year-old Roshni and her son, Sandeep, 23, with his service weapon in Haryana's Sonipat district in April and absconded with Sandeep's newly-wed wife Sarita with whom he had an affair. Sarita had been married to Sandeep for just three days when the constable attacked and killed the mother-son duo.

Police officials said that Basant Singh was spotted early June 8 by inspector Sucha Singh near the old district courts complex in Chandigarh's Sector 17.

The inspector, who was on night patrol duty, had stopped Basant after seeing him moving around in suspicious circumstances.

He was being taken in the vehicle to the nearby police station when he attacked the inspector and the driver with a sharp-edged weapon. The murderous attack took place just a few metres from the Sector 17 police station in the heart of the city.

Sucha Singh later succumbed to stab injuries at the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) here.

Basant and Sarita then drove away in Sucha Singh's vehicle. It was later found abandoned near Dhanas village on the outskirts of this union territory.

He was arrested by the Haryana Police from New Delhi after tracking his location through a friend who was in touch with him. Sarita was also arrested with him and both were brought to Chandigarh.

The court held the duo guilty under various sections of IPC including 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 333 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 397 (robbery or dacoity). Besides they have also been convicted under various sections of the Arms Act.