Seeking to give a new twist to the much-discussed Sheena Bora murder case, her mother and prime accused in the case Indrani Mukerjea on Wednesday alleged that her husband Peter Mukerjea, also an accused, and accused-turned-approver Shyamvar Rai, her former driver, may have “conspired” and “abducted” Sheena, made her “untraceable” and later "destroyed" the evidence.
In a two-page hand-written letter the Special CBI Court Judge (copy of which is available with The Pioneer), Indrani stated: “I have strong reasons to believe that the accused 4 (A4) Pratim Mukherjea ( better known as Peter Mukherjea) with the assistance of other accused persons including Accused no 3 (A3)-turned-approver, Shyamwar Pinturam Rai may have conspired and abducted my daughter Sheena Bora in 2012 and made her untraceable and subsequently destroyed evidence”.
Confirming that her client had indeed written a hand-written letter to the trial court judge, Indrani’s lawyer Gunjan Mangla said that Indrani had written the letter on of her free will and claimed that contrary to speculation, she has not made “any allegations or blamed anybody” in the matter.
“I do believe that (the above mentioned) along with others may have manipulated circumstance to frame me and have influenced witnesses, situations and information to lead to my arrest on 25-8-2015, for a heinous crime that they may have committed, aided and abetted,” Indrani stated in her letter.
“I am convinced that if we are able to obtain the CDR of A4 mobile number then we will be in a better position to ascertain if A4 and other persons were involved in the disappearance of my daughter, Sheena, and there will be more clarity if A4 and other persons have a role in framing me,” Indrani stated.
Indrani urged the Special Judge to help provide the call records of Peter Mukerjea’s mobile number from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012 and January 1, 2015 to December 31 2015. She went onto cite the number of Peter Mukherjea and said it was BPl mobile ( now loop Mobile). She urged the Special Judge could help provide justice to Sheena “who may have lost her life on account of greed, betrayal, jealousy, lust and ill-will of persons whom she dearly loved and trusted.”
It may be recalled that Indrani and other two arrested accused – Sanjeev and Rai – had allegedly “kidnapped” Sheena between 6.30 pm and 7.30 pm on April 24, 2012, from Bandra (west) in their car. She was allegedly strangulated in the car on the same evening and that on the following morning they carried the body of the deceased packed in a bag (which had they kept in the rear side of the car) to the jungles Gogade Khurd village off the Khopoli-Pen Road, where they doused the bag with petrol and set it on fire.
Sheena was daughter of Indrani from her first live in partner Siddhartha Das. Incidentally, Sheena was in a live-in relationship with Rahul Mukerjea, the son of Peter Mukherjea. Indrani was arrested on August 25, 2015 for her alleged role in the murder of Sheena Bora, her daughter from her first marriage with Siddharth Das. A day later, Indrani's second husband Sanjeev Khanna was arrested from Kolkata. later, on September 29, 2015, Indrani’s husband Peter Mukherjea was arrested. In a deposition made before the special CBI court on July 28 this year, Shyamwar Rai — who had been granted pardon and made an approver by the CBI court on June 26, 2016 – had informed the Special court here that the mother and prime accused Indrani Mukherjea had wanted to kill eliminate both her children — Sheena and son Mikhail Bora — in 2012.
Deposing before the Special CBI Court, Rai that Indrani, for whom he used to work as a driver, had told him over skype that she wanted to kill both her children. “A man from Kolkata would come to Mumbai for killing them. She wanted to have two children eliminated because both of them were trying to malign her image in the public. She ( Indrani) also told me that she had an ongoing property dispute with her children (Sheena and Mikhail),” Rai had recalled during his deposition before the trial court. His deposition was in line with the evidence that he had provided to the court under Section 313 of Cr Pc.
Rai, whose arrest by the Mumbai police on August 21, 2015 for alleged possession of 7.66 mm pistol had brought to light the Sheena Bora's ghastly murder and led to the arrest of her mother Indrani and other accused in the case, had earlier told the court that he was “repentant” for his act and that he was under “no pressure, threat or coercion” to reveal the facts.
With Rai having been made an approver, there are three accused in the case – Indrani Mukherjea, her current husband Peter Mukherjea and her earlier husband Sanjeev Khanna.