Aftab Amin Poonawalla, a 28-year-old food blogger from Mumbai, was arrested by the Delhi police on Saturday (November 12) for the gruesome murder of his Hindu live-in partner, Shraddha Walkar.
He had strangled the victim to death on May 18 this year and then chopped her body into 35 pieces. Over a span of several days, he disposed of her body parts at 18 different locations in the National Capital.
The gory details and severity of his heinous crime have sent shockwaves across the country. His social media accounts have also come under the scanner, with netizens outpouring their anger in the comment section of his posts.
Killer of Shraddha was a vocal ‘activist’ on social media
Aftab Amin Poonawalla had the persona of an activist on social media. He was seen co-opting the liberal narrative of targeting Hindu festivals by raking up one environmental issue or the other.
In October 2015, he shared a post wherein a child was seen holding a poster that read, “This Diwali burst your ego, not crackers.” His attempt at virtue-signalling the Hindu community did not stop with the festival of lights.
In March 2016, he was seen trying to trick Hindus into guilt for ‘wasting water’ on the occasion of Holi. Although ‘World Water Day’ is observed on March 22, he deliberately shared a post about ‘water scarcity’ on March 24 (coinciding with the Holi festivities of that year).
However, Opindia did not find any social media posts by Aftab, asking adherents of other Faiths from celebrating their festival differently. He had exclusively confined his virtue signalling to Hindu festivals.
He was also seen supporting the LGBTQ+ movement by adding ‘Pride colours’ to his Facebook display picture.
As ironic as it may sound, Aftab Amin Poonawalla was also a ‘women’s rights activist.’ In 2014, he shared a post by ‘The Logical Indian’ that read, “Women are not born with labels.”
According to Shraddha’s father, the accused physically assaulted her daughter on multiple occasions. The victim had informed her parents about the abuse perpetrated by Aftab.
The murder accused did not leave any opportunity to pretend as a ‘humanist’ on social media. “The smallest coffins are the heaviest,” a post shared by Aftab read in the aftermath of the 2014 Peshawar School Massacre.
Aftab, however, had no qualms about slaughtering his ‘beloved’ and storing her body in the refrigerator. He even went on to mince her intestine into finely diced shreds. The accused also had sex with multiple women, while Shraddha’s dismembered body lay frozen in the refrigerator.
His activism did not stop and only intensified with time. He had also championed the cause of Aarey forest and had been an advocate for net neutrality.
Aftab Amin Poonawalla targeted BJP with a dubious social media post
The murder accused also insinuated that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had been at the helm of creating communal tensions in the society,
In October 2015, he shared a post, which claimed that an alleged BJP worker (dressed in burqa) tried to throw beef inside a temple and create a Hindu-Muslim divide.
While reporting about the matter, India News found that the original tweet, which was the basis of the contentious claim, was deleted.
Even the likes of Alt News could not find any conclusive report about such an incident. “Alt News could not find a single conclusive news report of the incident. The claim which had circulated back then- that the person is a RSS member, could not be verified,” it had stated.
The murderer of Shraddha was obsessed with food, tattoos
Aftab was fascinated with the tattoos, which he embossed on his two arms. While one read ‘Faith’, the other one read ‘Hope.’ He had flaunted them in various social media posts and even made it the display picture of his Facebook profile.
Besides tattoos, the murder accused was obsessed with taking pictures of food. His Instagram profile (@thehungrychokro) is filled with images of desserts and beverages.
Through his food blogging pursuits, Aftab was even able to meet celebrity chef, Harpal Singh Sokhi, on the sets of Turban Tadka in May 2014.
Aftab Amin Poonawalla had a ‘skill for the kill’: A Retrospective analysis
On October 3, 2016, the murder accused shared a Buzzfeed article, which taught ways to chop fruits and vegetables like a professional chef. Just 6 years later, he used the same skills to slaughter his live-in partner.
On Monday (November 14), the Delhi police informed that Aftab Amin Poonawalla read about human anatomy before chopping Shraddha’s body and searched for methods, to clean the blood, on the internet.
Reports also mention that the accused had earlier worked as a chef in a Mumbai-based restaurant. During the chef training, he was taught how to cut meat into small pieces and preserve them in refrigeration.
The job had also taught him tips and tricks to maintain cleanliness after chopping the meat. According to the police, Aftab’s former job as a chef helped him in clinically chopping Shraddha’s dead body into 35 pieces.
Contradictory claims about the religion of the murder accused settled
After the news of the barbaric crime went viral on social media, the usual suspects began contradicting the religious affiliation of Aftab Amin Poonawalla. They claimed that the accused is a Parsi by Faith and his heinous act is being used to ‘defame’ the Muslim community.
Opindia had debunked the disinformation and pointed out how Aftab had professed his Faith on Instagram. “I am a Muslim and the other term you’re is Hindu. Lord Krishna is the God of Hindus. May I ask why the certain inquisitiveness about my religion???” he told another user.
The religious affiliation of the accused also becomes clear from the complaint, filed by the victim’s father with the police and attached to the First Information Report (FIR) in the case.
“My daughter had told my wife in 2019 that she wants to stay in a live-in relationship with Aftab Amin Poonawalla. I and my wife had said ‘No’ to it. This is because we are Hindus and belong to the Koli caste. And the boy is a Muslim,” the complaint read.
It further added, “In our place, we do not engage in inter-caste, inter-faith relationships.” It is thus clear that Aftab Amin Poonwalla is a Muslim by Faith and not a Parsi, as claimed by several users on social media.
The arrest of the accused on Saturday (November 12) thus brings closure to the 6-month-old case, although shocking details about Aftab continue to emerge and shock the public conscience.
