PALGHAR: A 22-year-old woman was allegedly strangulated to death by her live-in partner in Palghar district of Maharashtra for insisting to marry him, with the police arresting the accused from West Bengal days later, an official said.
The crime came to light on March 15 after the woman's decomposed body was found in a room that they had rented in Dahanu town of Palghar district, he said on Friday.
The 26-year-old accused, Minazuddin Abdul Ajij Mulla alias Ravindra Reddy, was arrested on March 22 from South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, from where he and the victim hailed, the police official said.
Addressing media on Friday, District Superintendent of Police Balasaheb Patil said, "The woman, Anisha Barasta Khatun, was found dead on March 15 in a room located in a chawl at Dahanu where she lived with her live-in partner, who was untraceable. The police sent her body for post-mortem and initially registered a case of accidental death."
"However, the autopsy report confirmed that the death was caused by strangulation. After that, it was converted into a case of murder," he said.
Soon, a police team was formed with Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dahanu division) Ankita Kanse leading the investigation, he added.
During the probe, the police found that accused Mulla hailed from West Bengal and adopted the name Ravindra Reddy to get a room in Dahanu on rent and pretended that the victim was his wife, another official said.
The crime came to light after the neighbours complained of a foul smell emanating from the room and informed the owner.
As there was no response from inside the room, the owner opened the door and they found the woman's decomposed body lying inside.
They immediately alerted the police, he said.
A team from the Dahanu police station was sent to West Bengal to trace and nab the accused.
After seven days of persistent efforts, they apprehended Mulla in the early hours of March 22, he added.
Additional Superintendent of Police Pankaj Shirsat said the accused killed the victim as she kept insisting on marrying him, although he was against the idea.
Following his arrest, a court in Palghar has remanded Mulla in police custody till April 2, he said.