A man, aged 56, was taken into custody on Wednesday evening after being accused of murdering his live-in partner and dismembering her body into 20 pieces at his rented apartment in Mira Road, Mumbai.
According to police, the accused cooked portions of her body in a pressure cooker before putting them in plastic bags to dispose of them.
According to an officer from Nayanagar Police Station, suspicions arose regarding the murder being committed approximately two to three days ago, as decomposing body parts were discovered in the suspect's residence.
The officer further stated, "It seems that the accused had been residing with the dismembered body parts throughout this period."
Manoj Sahni, the accused, has been living with Saraswati Vaidya, 32, in an apartment block in Geeta Nagar Phase 7 for the past three years.
At approximately 7 pm on Wednesday, residents of the building contacted the Nayanagar Police Station to report a strong and unpleasant odor emanating from the couple's apartment.
Upon arrival at the building and subsequent entry into the flat, law enforcement discovered the dismembered body parts of the woman.
Following a disagreement between the couple, the woman was murdered by her partner.
Sahni was promptly apprehended and taken into custody. Jayant Bajbale, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1), stated, "We have detained Sahni and are currently conducting an investigation to ascertain the motive behind the murder and the methods employed to carry it out."
According to a Jayanagar Police Station officer, certain body parts are missing, and they assume the culprits dumped them somewhere.
The police are currently in the process of lodging a FIR against Sahni, charging him with murder and destruction of evidence. Additionally, a forensic team has been dispatched to the apartment to gather samples and collect evidence.
According to police officers, residents of the building reported that the couple had minimal interaction with them. The flat they resided in lacks a nameplate on the door and is registered under the name of Sonam Builders.
A similar case occurred in Delhi, where on January 24, the Delhi Police submitted a charge sheet consisting of 6,629 pages against Aftab Poonawalla at Delhi's Saket court.
In May of the previous year, Poonawala dismembered Shraddha Walker's body and stored the pieces in a refrigerator at his residence in Delhi for several weeks.
Eventually, he scattered the remains across different locations in the city.