Love Jihad in Navi Mumbai? Taxi Driver Arrested For Murdering Girlfriend, Dumping Body in Uran

Navi Mumbai: In an alleged case of Love Jihad or simply love gone wrong, a Hindu girl was killed by a Muslim taxi driver in Navi Mumbai, said a report. The 27-year-old taxi driver, named Nizamuddin Rafiq Ali, has been arrested by the police, two weeks after a missing complaint was filed by the woman’s family. 

Poonam Chandrakant Shirsagar, the victim, was a resident of Mankhurd. She worked as a househelp at Sandhurst Road in south Mumbai, and did not return home on April 18. Her family members got worried and visited her workplace the next day, and were told that she left in time the previous day. Poonam’s family consists of her mother, brother, and two married sisters. The family filed a missing complaint with the police on April 19.

How the Mumbai Police cracked the case

Police investigation revealed that Poonam often took the shared cab of Nizam to go to her workplace. The two were in a relationship for the past four years, which turned sour. Based on this information, Nizamuddin was detained by the cops. He is a married man with a child, and his family lives in Uttar Pradesh, said the report.

Even as Nizamuddin denied knowing Poonam, the Uran police found a highly decomposed body in a sack and blanket and alerted the Mankhurd police on April 25.  Poonam’s family identified her body through her clothes and ring. 

The Uran police registered a case of murder and sent Poonam’s body for an autopsy before handing it over to the family for the last rites. On further investigation, the police found that Nizamuddin took Poonam to Khadavli on the ill-fated day, where he is believed to have strangled her before disposing of her body in a sack and blanket in Uran.

Is it Love Jihad?

BJP leader and Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha, who met the victim’s family after the incident, told the media, “This is the third such incident in Mumbai. So the police will not ignore it. The issue of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis living illegally in Mumbai will have to be settled. Otherwise, a young Hindu woman will not be able to get out of the house safely.”

“The guardian minister, as a component of the state government, will try to bring justice to Poonam Shirsagar. If strict action is not taken against the accused within 24 hours, there will be a violent agitation,” warned Lodha.

Although it is not clear if it is a case of Love Jihad, the incident has shocked the residents of Navi Mumbai amidst rising cases of crime in the satellite city.