Caretaker quizzed in Aarey murder

The Mumbai Police Crime Branch, investigating the death of 20-year-old Atharva Shinde at Aarey Colony earlier this month, on Friday made inquiries with the caretaker of the bungalow where Atharva attended a birthday party the night before he was found dead.

Atharva, the son of police inspector Narendra Shinde with the Economic Offences Wing, was found dead on May 9 by a lake near the Royal Palms Estate. The investigation was transferred to Unit XI of the Crime Branch on Thursday after Mr. Shinde wrote to the Commissioner of Police requesting stronger action.

Senior police inspector Chimaji Adhav, Unit XI, said, “We have made inquiries with a caretaker at the bungalow, who had seen the girl who had accompanied Atharva to the party near the lake where his body was later found. The caretaker told us she was covered in dirt and walking unsteadily towards the party venue.” Mr. Adhav said that according to the caretaker, the girl was intoxicated, looked terrified and was behaving in an aggressive manner. He said he took her to the bungalow on his scooter and called up her parents. The Crime Branch will also question the girl to verify the caretaker’s claims.

Investigating officers said the caretaker might be among the few credible sources of information, as all attendees at the party were intoxicated and have been unable to give a coherent sequence of events. The police are likely to quiz him again later.

Mr. Shinde, in his letter, has said that he suspects that the girl knows more than she is admitting to, and that she might be somehow connected to Atharva’s death. He said Atharva’s body was covered in injuries, including his anal region, and that his shirt and socks were missing, all of which indicate a severe assault. He said the other youngsters at the party have been misleading the investigators.