After ‘unsatisfactory answers’, Aaftab to face final polygraph session today
Aaftab Poonawala, who is accused of killing his girlfriend Shraddha Walkar and chopping her body into 35 parts, will undergo another polygraph test session at the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Rohini on Monday, said officials aware of the matter, adding that the suspect will be asked to respond to some still unanswered questions related to the alleged crime .
The officials added that they will proceed with Poonawala’s narco analysis either on Monday or Tuesday, if the polygraph test is concluded on Monday.
“We kept our lab open over the weekend for the polygraph test. On Sunday, the investigating team confirmed that they have got approval for Poonawala’s custody from Tihar jail and will bring him to the lab for the remaining polygraph test session on Monday. We are also prepared for his
narco test, which will be conducted at Baba Saheb Ambedkar hospital after the polygraph test is complete,” said Sanjeev Gupta, assistant director of the FSL.
FSL officials said the first session of the test was conducted on Tuesday evening. The second session of the test, which was to be held on Wednesday was deferred after Poonawala reportedly “fell ill”. The second and third sessions
were conducted on Thursday and Friday.
“Poonawala remained elusive during the main sessions, which is why we did not receive the desired responses. He was constantly coughing and sneezing, because of which the readings on the machine were affected. Data from the sessions was analysed, and it was decided that a few key questions were unanswered,” said an FSL official, who asked not to be named.
The narco analysis and polygraph tests are inadmissible in court. However, through these tests, police hope to judge if Poonawala has been honest about his alleged version of the murder. The test results are also crucial for investigators as they attempt to sift through Poonawala’s reportedly conflicting statements.
Poonawala is accused of murdering his girlfriend Shraddha Walkar this May, chopping up her body and dumping the body parts in forested areas in and around the Capital.
The gruesome crime was unearthed last week after Poonawala allegedly told the police that he murdered Walkar (27), at their Chhattarpur flat six months ago, chopped her body into at least 35 pieces for over two days, stored them in a refrigerator for about three months, and dumped the body parts in south Delhi and Gurugram.