Aaftab Poonawala's lawyer says he hasn't confessed that he murdered Shraddha Walkar

Aaftab Poonawala has not confessed that he murdered his live-in partner Shraddha Walkar, his lawyer Abhinash Kumar told a news channel on Tuesday. He is accused of murdering his live-in girlfriend Shraddha Walkar. Delhi Police said he later chopped up the body into 35 pieces and kept it in a fridge before disposing of in a jungle over 18 days.

In response to the demand that Aaftab be hanged to death, the lawyer told NDTV that a person is presumed innocent until convicted by the court. Kumar also dismissed the charge that the accused is misleading investigators and not cooperating with the investigation, claiming that in such a case, he would not have consented to the narco-analysis and polygraph test.

"Aftab is not completely denying but he is cooperating with Delhi Police. He has told me that he is satisfied with the process. He is cooperating with the Delhi Police. Court has allowed me to meet him today evening," added Kumar.

"The Delhi Police is not able to collect all evidence. Till now, it has not been able to collect the weapon of the offence and the mobile phone and bones of Shraddha,” the lawyer told the news channel.

The Delhi Police arrested Aaftab Poonawala on November 12 in connection with the murder of his live-in partner Shraddha Walkar. As per the police, he strangled her on May 18 at their rental home in Delhi, cut her body into several pieces, and then disposed of them over time. After Walkar's father reported her disappearance to the Manikpur Police Station in Vasai, the case was made public. Additionally, he told the police that during their three-year live-in relationship, Poonawala frequently abused Shraddha.

The accused was tracked down and interrogated on the basis of a FIR filed on November 10 at the Mehrauli Police Station in Delhi. While he initially claimed that Shraddha had ended their relationship and left the house, police claim that he eventually confessed to the crime. His police custody has been extended by 5 days on two separate occasions since then. While multiple teams conduct search and recovery operations for the missing body parts, his polygraph and narco-analysis tests will be conducted soon.

Saket court has extended the police custody of Aftab Poonawala for the next 4 days in Shraddha Walkar murder case. He was produced before the court in a special hearing.

Also Read: Shraddha Walkar murder case: Traces of blood found in Aftab Poonawala’s bathroom, kitchen
 

Also Read: Aaftab Poonawala says he killed Shraddha Walkar 'in heat of the moment'