evidence: Instead of viewing the brutal killing as a one-off, Indian society has been litigating a host of related questions. On social media, on cable news and within family WhatsApp group chats, the story of Walkar, a Hindu woman who defied her parents’ wishes and moved in with Poonawala, a Muslim man she met online, has been the vehicle for intense, often intergenerational debates over women’s independence, family, religion, domestic violence — and, above all, love in the age of apps. [...] When Walkar’s killing hit the headlines, it prompted a traditional backlash over the growth of unmarried couples living together — commonly called "live-in relationships" in India — and the lurking dangers of the apps. There was also the religious element, which added fuel to the explosive story: Walkar’s Hindu parents broke off ties with their daughter two years ago after she decided to move in with Poonawala, according to police records. The Walkars "don’t do inter-religion/inter-caste marriage," her father told police, records show. [...] As reports surfaced about Poonawala’s alleged history of physically abusing Walkar, some debaters on prime-time shows asked whether it reflected a broader conspiracy by Muslims to seduce or harm Hindu women. On Nov. 29, Poonawala confessed to killing Walkar, telling forensic examiners he strangled her in the heat of an argument over finances and his infidelity, according to Indian press reports. That day, men brandishing swords were arrested for attacking a police van that escorted Poonawala to a forensics laboratory.