Mystery man reopens Viveka Babajee case

An investigation probe into the death of Indian supermodel Viveka Babajee has been ramped up following the results of a chemical analysis and the sudden emergence of an enigmatic mystery man.

Babajee’s body was found hanging from a ceiling fan at the Western Mumbai apartment where she lived alone in June this year. Early reports speculated the 37-year-old model went into a depressive spiral after breaking up with her boyfriend Gautam Vora.

Investigators were told that neighbours had heard Babajee fighting with Vora a few hours before the incident – something Vora admitted. However, the 32-year-old stockbroker said he was only helping the model overcome her depression and that he had left the model's apartment after the altercation.

Now it has emerged that police conducted DNA tests on Vora and Babajee’s former business partner, Kartik Jobanputra, to find a match for samples collected from under the model’s fingernails. Both were earlier cleared of suspicion. Investigators have not ruled out the possibility of asking other friends of Babajee’s to submit samples for testing.

Senior police officials quoted in the Mumbai Mirror newspaper said the new findings would not affect the case, but that they would use the report to verify facts.

Meanwhile, the Mauritius-born model's family are trying to determine the identity and whereabouts of a man referred to in a Facebook message Vora sent her on the day she died. It said: “Adit and myself have been trying to call u to see if you are ok, please acknowledge, even if with a simple “yes” as a reply to this. Your phone is off. We are worried. Please get in touch asap.”

Babajee family spokesperson Dale Bhagwagar says the family has asked police to look into this new player on the scene in the hope that the events of their daughter’s tragic final hours may be brought to light. “The family has taken up the matter with the police and are awaiting the investigations to get over for further course of action,” Bhagwagar said.

The family has also asked that Babajee’s friend, model Tina Chatwal, be investigated. A statement from Bhawagar says Babajee rang Chatwal hours before the body was discovered. “Since Tina was said to be one of the two persons Viveka called before her demise, her family is also keen to know if Tina’s statements have been recorded,” he said.

In statements to the police and the court, Vora denied a relationship with the supermodel, claiming she was ‘just a friend’. The Babajee family accused him of lying, producing several photographs of the couple kissing and cuddling.

“Apart from various emails which indicate that Gautam Vora was madly in love with Viveka, there is also photographic evidence which further signifies their relationship as a couple in love,” Bhagwagar said at the time, adding that the family also found “shocking obscene photographs” that Vora had sent Babajee from his BlackBerry.

He now says the family just wants to know what happened. “The family wants the truth to prevail. They want Viveka ex-boyfriend Gautam Vora to confess to the police about what exactly happened in the last meeting on the fateful night before the incident, because it seems to them that there is much more than meets the eye about the death of Viveka Babajee,” he said.
 

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