Mumbai: 23-yr-old married woman found dead in hotel room

, Oct 25: A 23 year-old married woman was found

in a

room in Mumbai on Thursday, police siad.

According to an agency's report, the police has identified the deceased woman as Rashida Suratwala, a resident of Golibar in Santa Cruz (East).

Rashida reportedly told her parents that she is going out for a relative's wedding.

The senior police inspector Arun Chauhan said that Rashida was found dead by hotel staff at around 7 pm in room number 205 of the Milan International Hotel, and added that police arrived at the scene of the crime at around 9.30 pm on Thursday.

"We received information about a 23-year-old woman being found dead in Hotel Milan International. We have registered a case of murder. Investigation is on," said Inspector Chauhan.

Inspector Chauhan further revealed that the deceased and her sister-in-law had gone to the hotel at 1.50 pm, and were waiting for one Shahid Shaikh, who had known Rashida since their college days.

According to Chauhan, Shahid arrived at the hotel at around 3 pm and asked Rashida's sister-in-law to wait outside the room or in the hotel lobby, as he had to discuss something with Rashida.

Rashida's sister-in-law waited in the hotel lobby for about five hours, and then went to the room and knocked on the door.

Rashida was found lying on bed and her face had become black.

When there was no response from inside, she called up the hotel staff and the door was opened with a duplicate key.

Rashida was found lying on bed and her face had become black, as she had been strangulated with the help of a pillow.

Shahid was not in the room, and has now been declared the prime suspect in the crime, said Inspector Chauhan.

The body of deceased has been sent for post-mortem to the Cooper Hospital, and further investigations are underway, said Chauhan.

OneIndia News

(With agency inputs)