A group holds a candle light vigil in honour of Shraddha Walker in Lucknow on Tuesday.Delhi News Highlights: The Delhi Police has filed a plea at the Saket court to conduct narco test on Aaftab Poonawala, the accused in the Shraddha Walkar murder case. Meanwhile, a team of forensic experts inspecting the body parts of 27-year-old Shraddha, who was allegedly killed by her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawala in Delhi, has said that the process of DNA sampling is a challenging task as the samples they have got so far are old and the analysis would take at least two weeks.
Days after 28-year-old Aaftab Poonawaala allegedly killed his live-in partner and chopped her body into over 30 pieces, he went to see a local doctor for treatment of the “small wounds” on his hands, it is learnt. The deceased, Shraddha Walkar (27), was killed at the couple’s rented home in Chattarpur Pahadi area on May 18 and her body pieces were dumped in a nearby forest. Delhi Police have said Aaftab confessed to the murder and told them about visiting the doctor. Delhi Police on Tuesday took Aaftab Poonawala to the Mehrauli forest where he allegedly dumped body parts of Shraddha Walkar.
Poonawaala was sent a termination notice over email from his workplace around the same time the Delhi Police picked him up from his rented apartment in Chattarpur Pahadi, The Indian Express has learnt. Sources said Poonawala had been working as an associate in the client servicing vertical at a private company in Gurgaon for the past three months. A source said, “He started working at a call centre shortly (7-15 days) after the murder.”
Anti-smog machine in Delhi to combat the deteriorating air quality. (Express Photo)
The BJP on Wednesday fired back at Delhi Jal Board Vice-Chairman Saurabh Bhardwaj, calling him a "lie-churning machine", after the AAP MLA alleged the BJP's involvement in the water crisis in south Delhi's Vasant Kunj. Vasant Kunj residents had complained of not receiving piped drinking water for a week.
Bhardwaj had earlier alleged that the water crisis in Vasant Kunj was "manufactured" by the BJP to create a false narrative against the AAP government ahead of the civic polls.
"Now, a few days before the MCD elections, suddenly we find that a huge chunk of the water pipeline has very carefully been broken in the lower side. We say this deliberately as the pipeline has been broken in such a way that the water will continue to flow out but since it is at the bottom it will not come up on the road above," Bhardwaj said. "This makes it difficult to trace the breakage in the pipeline and the water obviously does not reach the households that it is meant to reach," he added. (PTI)
Aaftab Poonawala, the 28-year-old accused of killing his 27-year-old live-in partner Shraddha Walkar on May 18, chopping her body into over 30 parts and disposing them over 2-3 months, is learnt to have told police the two had recently been arguing over who would go to Mumbai to fetch their luggage to Delhi – since both of them were facing a cash crunch.
While Delhi police are taking everything with a grain of salt – on Wednesday they moved an application in court to conduct a narco test on Aaftab – investigators say he has pointed to money issues becoming a factor in the couple’s relationship of late, since both had left their jobs in Mumbai and backpacked across Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand before they came to Delhi and took up a house on rent for Rs 9,000.
Aaftab is learnt to have told police he refused Walkar’s request to fetch their belongings from Mumbai, and had also been urging her to vacate their shared apartment in South Delhi’s Chattarpur Pahadi. Read More
The central government has informed the Delhi High Court that entry of female candidates in certain branches of the Indian Navy University has been permitted at par with male candidates.
The submission was made in a plea seeking a direction to the Centre through the Ministry of Defence to permit the entry of female candidates in “Indian Navy University Entry Scheme, executive branch general service (X) cadre, IT and in technical branch engineering and electrical branch at par with male candidates”.
The plea further sought a direction to the Centre to indicate the steps undertaken permitting entry of female candidates at par with male candidates. Read More
A college friend of Shraddha Walkar, who was the first to realise that she had stopped communicating with her close friends, took upon himself to trace her whereabouts. He started messaging and calling Aaftab Poonawala and all her close friends. He finally alerted her family about her disappearance, prompting them to approach the local police.
The friend, who lives near the area where Shraddha hailed from, works in an IT firm. He had met Shraddha in junior college where they became friends. After junior college, they met occasionally, but during the Covid lockdown the circle of four-five college friends got revived. Read More
A team of forensic experts inspecting the body parts of 27-year-old Shraddha Walkar, who was allegedly killed by her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawala in Delhi, has said that the process of DNA sampling is a challenging task as the samples they have got so far are old and the analysis would take at least two weeks.
Walkar was allegedly murdered on May 18 by 28-year-old Poonawala, who later chopped her body and scattered the pieces in the Mehrauli forest. The police filed an FIR on November 10 after receiving a complaint from Walkar’s father. Read more.
Delhi's air quality was recorded in the poor category on Wednesday morning but it is predicted to improve as favourable wind speed is likely during the day.
The capital's average air quality index (AQI) stood at 262, worsening from 227 at 4 pm on Tuesday. It was 294 on Monday and 303 on Sunday. An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe. The city recorded a minimum temperature of 13.2 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature is likely to settle around 28 degrees Celsius. Temperatures are predicted to drop due to winds blowing in from snow-clad mountains in the north. Delhi saw a significant improvement in the air quality over the last three days due to better wind speed and a sharp decline in farm fires in Punjab.
According to data from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Punjab reported 141 farm fires on Tuesday and just four on Monday. A total of 2,467 incidents of stubble burning were reported in the agrarian state on Saturday. (PTI)
The Anti-Corrpution Branch has arrested Aam Aadmi Party MLA Akhilesh Pati Tripathi's brother-in-law in a cash-for-ticket case, according to ANI. Two others have also been arrested in connection with the case.
According to the report, MLA Tripathi demanded Rs 90 lakh in exchange for a ticket for AAP worker Shobha Khari, wife of Gopal Khari.
With the lethal weapon yet to be found, body parts yet to be discovered, and clinching CCTV footage yet to be dug up, the Delhi Police have their task cut out in investigating the murder of 27-year-old Shraddha Walkar, who was killed allegedly by her live-in partner, 28-year-old Aaftab Poonawala, on May 18 this year.
Senior officers in Delhi Police told The Indian Express said multiple teams have been deployed to recover the evidence so the investigation can progress since, at the moment, a large part of the case rests on Aaftab’s alleged confession. Probe officers acknowledged they are facing challenges as the woman was killed six months ago, and finding body parts in a dense jungle, not far from the couple’s rented residence in South Delhi’s Chhattapur Pahadi area, is not easy. On Tuesday, too, police teams visited the forest accompanied by Aaftab, as well as Walkar’s father and brother, to try and find the missing body parts. However, they recovered just one suspected body part, which too will be confirmed following a forensic examination. Aaftab is alleged to have chopped the body into over 30 parts and dumped it over two-three months. Read more.
With the lethal weapon yet to be found, body parts yet to be discovered, and clinching CCTV footage yet to be dug up, the Delhi Police have their task cut out in investigating the murder of 27-year-old Shraddha Walkar, who was killed allegedly by her live-in partner, 28-year-old Aaftab Poonawala, on May 18 this year. Senior officers in Delhi Police told The Indian Express said multiple teams have been deployed to recover the evidence so the investigation can progress since, at the moment, a large part of the case rests on Aaftab’s alleged confession.
Probe officers acknowledged they are facing challenges as the woman was killed six months ago, and finding body parts in a dense jungle, not far from the couple’s rented residence in South Delhi’s Chhattapur Pahadi area, is not easy.
On Tuesday, too, police teams visited the forest accompanied by Aaftab, as well as Walkar’s father and brother, to try and find the missing body parts. However, they recovered just one suspected body part, which too will be confirmed following a forensic examination. Aaftab is alleged to have chopped the body into over 30 parts and dumped it over two-three months. Read more.
Aaftab Poonawala, accused of murdering his live-in partner Shraddha Walker, was sent a termination notice over email from his workplace around the same time the Delhi Police picked him up from his rented apartment in Chattarpur Pahadi, The Indian Express has learnt.
Sources said Poonawala had been working as an associate in the client servicing vertical at a private company in Gurgaon for the past three months. A source said, “He started working at a call centre shortly (7-15 days) after the murder.”
A senior official from the company told The Indian Express, “He joined three months ago and had been working in the client servicing vertical. Over 17-18 days ago, he was seen in the office. His work revolved around making calls to sell the company’s products and services. But after he did not report for work for the past eight-nine days, he was sent a termination notice two days ago for absconding from duty.” Read more.
Delhi's air quality improved significantly on Tuesday amid a sharp decline in farm fires in Punjab over the last two days.
The capital's 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 227 on Tuesday. It was 294 on Monday and 303 on Sunday. An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.
The air quality is likely to improve further on the back of strong winds, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The city recorded a minimum temperature of 15.4 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 29.5 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, it said. (PTI)
A total of 2,021 candidates have filed their nomination papers with the poll authorities for the upcoming civic elections in Delhi, sources said on Tuesday. The 250-ward Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) goes to polls on December 4 while the results will be declared on December 7.
Of the total nominations, Independent candidates have the maximum share with 507, followed by AAP with 492.
On Monday, the last day to file nominations, all candidates from the three major parties -- the AAP, BJP and the Congress -- and nominees from other parties and many Independents submitted their papers. (PTI)
* HC dismissed a petition by former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray against the Election Commission's interim order freezing Shiv Sena's name and election symbol.
* Dismissing a PIL challenging the appointment of Justice D Y Chandrachud as the Chief Justice of India, HC said offices held by the constitutional functionaries in public trust are not open to denigration by self-styled warriors of public interest on the basis of superficial allegations.
* HC lamented the "complete unsympathetic attitude" of the Delhi Development Authority towards the families of two people who died inside a sewer this year.
* Police moved HC seeking a direction to the Delhi Waqf Board to produce documents related to the ownership of Nizamuddin Banglewali Masjid where the Tablighi Jamaat congregation was held in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
* HC permanently restrained retailers on e-commerce platform Amazon from selling sherbets made in Pakistan under the 'Rooh Afza' brand owned by India's Hamdard.
* HC reserved its verdict on the bail plea by Chitra Ramkrishna in the money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping on National Stock Exchange employees.
* HC granted police protection to a newly-wed couple who got married against the wishes of her parents and were facing threats from the woman's family. (PTI)
Days after 28-year-old Aaftab Poonawaala allegedly killed his live-in partner and chopped her body into over 30 pieces, he went to see a local doctor for treatment of the “small wounds” on his hands, it is learnt. The deceased, Shraddha Walkar (27), was killed at the couple’s rented home in Chattarpur Pahadi area on May 18 and her body pieces were dumped in a nearby forest.
Delhi Police have said Aaftab confessed to the murder and told them about visiting the doctor. Officers visited the clinic on Sunday after, a day after arresting Aaftab, and spoke to the doctor to confirm this. Read more
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday launched its theme song for the December 4 Muncipal Corporation of Delhi elections.
The theme song 'Janta Ki Taiyyari Hai, Kejriwal Ki Baari Hai' (People are prepared, its Kejriwal's turn this time) has been sung by senior AAP leader and MLA Dilip Pandey. The lyrics of the song have been written by Lokesh Singh of AAP Bihar unit's cultural cell while the music has been composed by Sushant Asthana who has studied music from Trinity College in London.
The song was launched by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. (PTI)
In a lane in Mehrauli’s Chattarpur Pahadi area, there is an unremarkable green apartment building, like many others in the city. But it was this building that played host to the horrific murder of Shraddha Walker (27), allegedly by her live-in partner, Aaftab Poonawala (28), on May 18.
On Tuesday morning, police took Aaftab, his face obscured by a scarf, to the nearby Mehrauli jungle where he had disposed of her dismembered remains over a period of two-three months. While Tuesday’s search did not yield results, during previous searches police have recovered 13 possible body parts, mostly in the form of bones.
The street outside the apartment is sloped and narrow, characteristic of many of Mehrauli’s lanes, built on mountainous ground. The area is mostly residential, with the occasional shops. As Aaftab went out in the early hours of the morning to dispose of Shradhha’s remains in polythene bags, usually from 1 am to 2 am, few residents would have been awake to see him. Read more in our exclusive report
Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted police protection to a newlywed couple who got married against the wishes of her parents and were facing threats from the woman's family.
After the couple's wedding, the woman was forcibly kept in Rajasthan by her family, after which her husband approached the high court seeking a direction to produce her. On the court's direction, Delhi Police produced the woman before the bench here.
A bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Amit Sharma allowed the habeas corpus petition filed by the man and said the woman was at liberty to reside with her husband at their matrimonial home. The high court directed the police to "ensure the safety and security of the newlywed couple and ensure that the couple is allowed to live peacefully without any let or hindrance from any member of … (the woman's) family". (PTI)
The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday contended in the Delhi High Court that former AAP leader Tahir Hussain was part of a conspiracy to fund the 2020 Delhi riots by using proceeds of crime.
The ED's submissions were made while opposing a plea by Hussain challenging the framing of charges against him under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Justice Anu Malhotra, after hearing submissions of the counsel for Hussain and ED, reserved the order on the petition. The court asked the parties to file short written submissions in the case.
Hussain has challenged the trial court's November 3 order by which charges for the alleged offence under Sections 3 (offence of money laundering) and 4 (punishment for the offence of money laundering) of the PMLA were framed against him in connection with the 2020 riots in northeast Delhi. (PTI)
Seats in several science courses, especially in south- and off-campus colleges, remain vacant despite the Delhi University admission process reaching the third round of seat allocation.
College principals attributed the vacancies to delays in the admission process. They also said science students have a wider choice as they can elect commerce courses as well. The colleges expect some of the vacancies will be filled by the third round. The varsity declared the third list of seat allocation on Sunday and students can accept the seats allocated by Tuesday.
At the end of the second round of allocations, over 61,500 students have taken admission to the university. In the third round, 16,231 seats for undergraduate programmes were allocated. As of 7 pm on Monday, 9,504 students have accepted the college and courses allotted to them. (PTI)
A Delhi court Tuesday granted bail to actor Jacqueline Fernandez in a Rs 200 crore money laundering case involving conman Sukesh Chandrashekar.
Additional Sessions Judge Shailender Malik granted bail to the actor on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 and one surety of like amount. Earlier, during the bail arguments, the judge had warned ED not to implement a 'pick and choose policy', posing questions to the agency as to why it did not arrest her and was using different yardsticks in this case. A detailed order is still awaited.
Fernandez has been accused of enjoying the proceeds of a crime in which conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar had allegedly extorted Rs 200 crore from Aditi Singh, the wife of former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Singh. Read more
The Delhi HC has dismissed former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s plea against the Election Commission’s order freezing claim to the Shiv Sena party name and the bow and arrow symbol. A single judge bench of Justice Sanjeev Narula further directed the commission to decide the issue before it in an “expeditious manner”.
Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde’s factions approached the ECI laying claim to the party name “Shiv Sena” and the bow and arrow symbol but the election body in its October 8 “interim order” restrained both factions from using the party name and the symbol until it decides which among the two rival factions is entitled to use them.
News of a murder in their midst – of a 27-year-old woman by her 28-year-old live-in partner – shook the neighbourhood of Chhattarpur Pahadi, where the two stayed on rent, but most in the locality said they never noticed anything suspicious till police arrived to arrest the accused on Saturday.
The single-room apartment is located on the first floor in a congested lane. And while the accused used agarbatti, dhoop, potpourri and room fresheners to mask the stench, there was evident odour even on Monday. On a table, a bowl of potpourri still remained, while dust had settled on the furniture. Read more
A Delhi court has pulled up the Delhi Police and prosecution for presenting ‘irrelevant’ witnesses for examination before it in a 2020 North East Delhi riots case, issuing a final warning that such “mishappenings” shall not be taken leniently by the court.
In this case, a prosecution witness was to be examined on Monday. However, the defence counsel pointed out that there is no mention of a complaint of this complainant in the charges framed in this case. The prosecution conceded that “charges were not framed in respect of complaint made by witness present today or even by the witness, who has been summoned for tomorrow.” Read more
“If Aaftab Poonawala has done everything he has claimed during the interrogation, he must be hanged. I think he deserves stringent punishment for killing my daughter and hiding everything for months. I wish we knew what was going on…It was her friends who informed us…(she was) missing,” said Vikas Walkar, father of the 27-year-old Shraddha Walkar, who was allegedly killed by her live-in partner Poonawala at their rented flat in South Delhi’s Mehrauli in May this year.
“She was a different person before she met Poonawala," Vikas added. Read more
Award-winning American drama crime series Dexter has found itself in the eye of the storm of the Mehrauli murder case after the arrested accused, Aftaab Poonawala, 28, revealed to the police he was inspired by the show to hack and discard his partner’s body.
In May, Poonawala allegedly murdered his 27-year-old live-in partner Shraddha Walkar. The accused revealed to the police that he wanted to “silence her” but ended up strangulating Walkar. Poonawala then hacked Walkar’s body and kept the parts in small black poly bags, allegedly, inspired by the show’s main character, Dexter Morgan, played by Michael C. Hall, who is shown to have homicidal tendencies. Read more about Dexter and how it inspired Poonawala.
Police Tuesday took Delhi murder case accused Aaftab Poonawala to the Mehrauli forest to look for the remains of Shraddha Walkar and any evidence.
Express Photos by Abhinav Saha
Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena has recommended initiating disciplinary proceedings against former Waqf Board CEO S M Ali for allowing “Illegal resolutions of the Delhi Waqf Board (DWB)” at the behest of its then chairman and AAP leader Amanatullah Khan.
According to officials, the L-G has recommended disciplinary proceedings under Rule 16 of the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965. He has sent the recommendation to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
Ali has been accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) of indulging in acts of omission and commission that include not opposing the illegal resolution passed by the Waqf Board for the appointment of its next CEO and several other contractual staff in blatant disregard of his responsibilities, the L-G’s office said in a note. Read more
Police on Tuesday took accused Aaftab Poonawala to the Mehrauli forest where he allegedly dumped body parts of Shraddha Walkar. The police are yet to recover the murder weapon, a saw. Delhi Police stated that they will be interrogating Poonawaala’s friends and relatives in connection with the murder. “We are also looking for common friends and the ones who last spoke to Walkar,” said an officer.
On Tuesday morning, Delhi murder case accused Aaftab Poonawala was taken from the Mehrauli police station to the spot in the jungle where he allegedly disposed off parts of his live-in partner's body.
The Delhi High Court Monday issued a notice in a plea on the lack of infrastructure and equipment in the city’s 77 Government veterinary hospitals and dispensaries.
A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) moved by three social workers seeking direction to the Delhi Government, the Animal Welfare Board of India as well as the Veterinary Council of India to address the lack of infrastructure for treatment and diagnosis, manpower, hygiene, and essential equipment in the city’s veterinary hospitals.
The High Court issued notice and has listed the matter on January 18, 2023. Read more
The AIIMS Delhi administration Monday initiated an inquiry into a complaint that a cockroach was found in the food served to a young patient admitted at the premier institute.
The incident came to light after a Twitter user posted details along with photographs. He claimed that a cockroach was found in the dal served to the four-year-old patient. ”Pathetic and frightening state of affairs at the most prestigious Medical facility in National Capital- Serving “Cockroach Daal” to a 4 year old as first meal post major stomach surgery @aiims_newdelhi Shocked beyond belief,” the user Sahil Zaidi said in a tweet. Read more
The Delhi High Court has “permanently restrained” various sellers from selling identical products under the ‘Rooh Afza’ trademark, the famed Indian sherbet, after its owner Hamdard National Foundation filed a suit alleging that the products of its Pakistani counterpart are being sold in India through an e-commerce site.
A single judge bench of Justice Pratibha Singh made this observation in a trademark infringement suit moved by plaintiffs Hamdard National Foundation and Hamdard Laboratories India claiming that a company Golden Leaf was selling products under the ‘Rooh Afza’ mark on Amazon India which were not sold by them. Read more
A 'Dexter-inspired' murder has shocked the national capital after a 28-year-old Aaftab Poonawala killed and chopped up the body of his live-in partner, Shraddha Walkar, and dumped the body parts in dumping grounds and the jungle over the next few months.
The Indian Express brings you the latest updates and exclusives from the case. Read:
Live-in partner’s body in the fridge, accused brought another woman home on a date
‘I have right to make my decisions’: Last words to parents by woman killed by live-in partner
How horror unfolded in a first-floor flat, under nose of neighbours
A toxic and abusive relationship that ended in death