A jealous father-of-four, who tried to kill his ex-wife's new husband with a meat cleaver during a family celebration, has been locked-up for a minimum of seven years.
Girdaware Basra, 55, (pic.top) of Beaumont Drive, Northfleet “exploded in a fit of potentially lethal violence,” said Croydon Crown Court Judge Jeremy Gold QC.
He deemed Basra, who also once stabbed a man to death, a dangerous offender and passed a minimum senentence for public protection meaning the defendant will only be released when the parole board deem him safe.
Basra was convicted of attempting to murder Resham Singh, 32, and inflicting grievous bodily harm, with intent, on his ex Sukhvinder Kaur, 41, (pic.bottom) during the Diwali festival on October 26, last year.
He had invited the couple and his four children, two boys and two girls, aged between thirteen and sixteen to his home despite the existance of a restraining order for domestic violence.
“This was a very serious attack with a deadly weapon,” Judge Gold told Basra. “You have not shown a flicker of remourse for your actions.
Both victims and all four children were in court as the judge added: “You tried to say he started it and you only hit him with a lamp.
“You were in an advance state of intoxication caused by cocaine or alcohol or a combination of both.
“The force you used removed a sliver of skull bone from his scalp and your ex-wife suffered a serious hand injury.
“The attack took place in your house where your teenage children were present and enjoying a family evening.
“They saw the result of your violence and the blood-splattered condition of the house. It must have been terrifying for them.”
The court heard Basra was convicted of manslaughter at Maidtone Crown Court in 1983 after knifing a man through the heart during a fight outside a pub.
In 1986 he received five years for aggravated burglary while armed with a knife and was convicted of actual bodily harm for biting a police officer's finger during his arrest for drink-driving.
“You are a man prone to outbursts of serious violence, particularly when intoxicated,” Judge Gold told Basra, who also has convictions for possesing cocaine and a CS gas cannister.
The court heard Sukhvinder has been visiting the defendant in prison and he still maintains his innocence, despite the conviction.
During the trial Mr. Singh refused to give evidence against the defendant and Sukhvinder was treated as a “hostile” witness for the prosecution.
The jury were told there was no sign of trouble as they ate, drank alcohol and let off fireworks.
Later during an argument in a bedroom, Basra told Mr. Singh to leave, but when he replied he was not leaving without his wife, the defendant went to a cabinet and picked up “something like a cleaver”, with a sharp cutting edge.
He repeatedly brought it down on Mr. Singh’s head, causing him serious injuries, including a gaping wound.
Mr. Singh bit into Basra’s ear in an attempt to stop the attack and Sukhvinder’s left ring finger was badly cut as she stepped in.
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