The official, while citing the complaint letter dated 23rd November 2020, alleged that Poonawala used to beat her up and his parents were aware of it, according to the news agency PTI.
In her complaint to Tulinj police in Palghar in November 2020, Walkar alleged, "Poonawala has been abusing me and beating me up. Today he tied to kill me by suffocating me and he scares and blackmails me that he will kill me cut me up in pieces and throw me anyway. It's been six months since he has been hitting me. But did I not have the guts to go to the police because he would threaten to kill me."
"His parents are aware that he beats me and that he tried to kill me. I lived with him till date as we were supposed to get married anytime soon and had the blessing of his family. Henceforth, I am not willing to live with him so any kind of physical damage should be considered coming from him as he has been blackmailing me to kill me or hurt me whenever he sees me anywhere," she stated in the letter, as quoted by PTI.
Aaftab Poonawala is accused of smothering his live-in partner, Shraddha Walkar, and later cutting her into 35 pieces, which he kept in a 300-litre fridge for almost three weeks, before dumping them away in nearby areas over the course of 18 days in May 2022.
A Delhi police team has also recorded statements of four persons in Maharashtra's Palghar including two men. Of these four persons, the two male witnesses are identified as Rahul Ray and Godwin, the residents of the Vasai region.
(With PTI inputs)
