Delhi court extends police custody of Aftab for 5 days in Shraddha murder case, allows narco test

New Delhi [India], November 17 : A Delhi court on Thursday extended the police custody of accused Aftab Amin Poonawala for the next five days in the Shraddha Walker murder case.
The court also allowed the application for a narco test of the accused. Metropolitan magistrate Aviral Shukla of Saket court extended the police custody of Aftab Poonawala for the next five days after the submission of Delhi Police. An application for permission for his narco test was moved on Saturday.
He was produced before the court through video conferencing after five days of police custody.
Delhi police had moved an application seeking an extension of police custody for ten days. Aftab was arrested on Saturday after Delhi police started probing into a missing complaint filed by Shraddha's father Vikas Walker.
According to the sources, Delhi police submitted before the court, "The investigation is going on and the accused is to be taken to Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh where he went with Shraddha."
Delhi police submitted that further custodial interrogation of the accused is required to unearth the entire case and to collect the evidence.
Earlier, the court allowed an application seeking the appearance of Aftab through video conferencing.
"As per the information, some religious and miscreants may attack the accused. Under these circumstances, it would not be appropriate to produce the accused in the courtroom," Delhi Police submitted.
After considering the application, the judge said, "I am aware of the public sentiment attached to the case. I am also aware of the media coverage and sensitivity of the matter. In the interest of justice, the application for appearance through video conferencing is allowed."
While the court was hearing the application, lawyers were protesting outside the courtroom and raising slogans against Aftab. They were raising the slogan "Shraddha ke hatyare ko fansi do, fansi do" (Hang the murderer of Shraddha).
The court, thereafter, said that the application for seeking an extension of police custody will be taken up through VC.
Aftab was arrested on Saturday after Delhi police started probing into a missing complaint filed by Shraddha's father Vikas Walker. He had attempted to dupe the police of Delhi and Mumbai in the initial days of the investigation.
Another court also allowed the application for permission for the Narco analysis test of the accused. The court passed the order after noting the consent of the accused for the same.
According to Legal Aid Counsel, the application was moved on Saturday which has been allowed on Thursday.
Aftab is accused of strangling his live-in partner Shraddha Walker to death and chopping her body into 35 pieces.
Making a huge claim in the Shraddha Walker murder case, Delhi Police sources on Thursday said that the accused Aftab Poonawalla had charred his live-in partner's face to hide her identity. The Delhi Police sources claimed that he had first chopped her body into 35 pieces, then burnt her face in such a way that it becomes unidentifiable even if the body parts are discovered.
"During the interrogation, Aftab revealed that he had learnt about all this on the internet, and also about how to hide the body from everyone's reach," the sources claimed.
In yet another loop in the Shraddha Walker murder case, the Southern District Police of Delhi has contacted their eastern counterparts in a bid to match the DNA sample of chopped body parts including a human head which the latter had recovered earlier in June.
According to the sources, the East Delhi Police had found a chopped head and hand in the Trilokpuri area of Pandav Nagar police station area of the national capital in June this year, which was nearly a month after Shraddha was murdered (on May 18).
Police investigation revealed that the couple had a fight on May 18 during which Aftab killed Shraddha. Delhi Police sources said the May 18 quarrel was not the first time, Aftab and Shraddha were fighting for three years.
"On May 18, there was a fight between the two regarding bringing household items from Mumbai. They used to fight over who would bear the household expenses and bring items. Aftab got very angry about this. The quarrel started around 8 pm on May 18 when Aftab strangled Shraddha to death. He kept her body in the room overnight and went to buy a knife and refrigerator the next day," sources told ANI.
Aftab had attempted to dupe the police of Delhi and Mumbai in the initial days of the investigation. Aftab had tried to hide the murder of Shraddha by removing any physical evidence, however, he had left the digital evidence that the police traced to reach the truth of the case.
Meanwhile, Shraddha's father on Tuesday demanded the death penalty for the accused while also suspecting 'love jihad' behind the incident.