Aaftab Poonawala planned to dump Shraddha Walkar's body parts in Himachal Pradesh, burnt her fingers and nails

Aaftab Poonawala, who allegedly killed his live-in partner Shraddha Walker and chopped her to pieces in May last year, had initially planned to dispose of the body parts in Himachal Pradesh, where the two had holidayed earlier, according to a chargesheet filed by Delhi Police. To this end, he had bought a large black bag worth Rs 1,200 and even contacted some cabbies to take him to the hill state. However, he cancelled the plan later over fears of getting caught on the way.

He then remembered the area around his friend Badri’s house, where he would often smoke on the terrace, and decided to dump the parts in the jungles he saw from there,” a source said. To keep Shraddha “alive”, Aaftab kept using her mobile phone for at least 10-12 days after the murder in a bid to mislead future investigation and confuse cops about when she was killed, the police investigation has revealed. “If any call came on Shraddha’s mobile, Aftab used to receive it and not say anything. He also used to call Shraddha’s friends from her mobile and when someone used to receive the call, he used to keep the phone on the side but stay silent,” the source added. According to sources, Aaftab cut most of the body into pieces in the flat’s bathroom the night of the murder. He ensured the parts were very small and didn’t resemble a human body. Not only that, he also burnt the fingers and nails.

On May 18, Shraddha reached the Chhatarpur flat around 11am, which was recorded in CCTV footage. As soon as she entered the house, there was an argument. Aaftab got angry on seeing Shraddha and asked where she had been the entire night. She asked him to mind his own business and said she would do whatever she wanted. Aaftab got enraged and thrashed Shraddha,” an official said, citing the chargesheet. A little later, both of them became normal and ordered food online. Around evening, just before having the food, Aaftab again got angry with Shraddha for not returning the previous night. He then sat on her and strangled her.