Mumbai murder: Accused met partner 16 years ago at ration shop; 'suicide claim' emerges

Accused Manoj Sane met Saraswati Vaidya 16 years ago at a ration shop where he used to work. They were from the same community and Saraswati was an orphan.

Manoj Sane, a 56-year-old man from Mumbai, allegedly killed his live-in partner 32-year-old Saraswati Vaidya and then chopped her body and boiled it in a pressure cooker to dissolve them before disposal. While Mumbai Police recovered several plastic bags containing the remains of Vaidya's body, accused Manoj Sane denied killing Saraswati and claimed she consumed poison on June 4. Then why did Manoj chop her body parts? Manoj Sane told the police he was scared after he found Saraswati dead and wanted to get rid of the body. Manoj Sane was arrested on Wednesday night and was produced in a court on Thursday where he was remanded to eight-day police custody. Read | ‘Foul smell, pieces lying’: How Mumbai cops discovered Shraddha Walkar re-run

Manoj and Saraswati used to fight regularly, neighbours of their Mira Road flat said.

Manoj met Saraswati 16 years ago at a ration shop

56-year-old Manoj Sane has been in a live-in relationship with 32-year-old Saraswati who was an orphan. Sane met Saraswati 16 years ago at a ration shop where he worked, police said. They developed a relationship and started living together at the Mira Road flat three years ago. They were from the same community. Read | Mumbai murder: Dumped body parts, foul smells and living with body parts - 5 points on Mira Road case

'Saraswati committed suicide, I was scared'

Manoj Sane claimed Saraswati consumed poison on June 4. When foam started coming from her mouth, he said he was scared that he would be booked for abetment to suicide and hence he bought a tree-cutter to chop her body.

Accused was about to boil Saraswati's dismembered feet when cops came

The Mumbai Police were alerted by neighbours who suspected the foul smell coming from Sane's flat. When police arrived, Sane was in the kitchen; going to boil the feet of the victim.