The main accused in the high-profile Shraddha Walker murder case, Aaftab Amin Poonawala, was ordered by the Delhi High Court on Friday to spend eight hours a day in the open before being kept in a solitary cell at night.
On a petition filed by Poonawala, who claimed that he could not be detained in solitary confinement in the name of security, a bench led by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait issued the order.

Poonawala is permitted to spend an hour outside in the morning and evening, in contrast to other prisoners who are allowed to spend eight hours outside daily, according to Poonawala’s attorney.

The Bench, which also included Justice Girish Kathpalia, ruled, “Since it is the petitioner’s counsel’s request, we direct the jail authorities to unlock him for eight hours, as applicable to other prisoners, and during the night, he be lodged in a solitary cell.”

The accused was not housed with other prisoners because of a perceived threat, according to the jail administration’s attorney.

He said that earlier, a trial court had issued orders requiring Poonawala to be provided with appropriate security following his attack during his transport to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Rohini.

Poonawala’s attorney claimed that despite having committed no “jail offences,” his client is being held in solitary confinement and is permitted “zero” human interaction in jail.

Poonawala is accused of strangling his live-in partner Walkar and chopping her body into pieces on May 18, 2022, in Mehrauli, Delhi. To avoid being discovered, it is said that he placed Walkar’s body parts inside a refrigerator before dispersing them over several days throughout the national capital.