Sheena Bora case: Indrani Mukerjea's daughter denies recording statement, alleges forgery and malicious intent

Mumbai: In a setback to prosecution in the Sheena Bora murder case, Vidhie Mukerjea, a key witness, on Tuesday denied in a court recording any statement before probe agencies and said that documents annexed as her statement in the CBI's chargesheet were "forged and fabricated".

Vidhie is daughter of former media executive Indrani Mukerjea and her ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna, both accused in the decade-long sensational murder case.

Bora was also a daughter of Indrani Mukerjea.

On Tuesday, Vidhie Mukerjea deposed as a witness in the murder case before special CBI judge J P Darekar.

Vidhie claimed her mother was left with no funds to defend herself as Rahul and Rabin, media baron Peter Mukerjea's sons, had stolen her ancestral jewellery worth crores and cash amounting to Rs 7 crore from her account.

Thus, they had a clear motive to falsely implicate Indrani Mukerjea, now out on bail, in the case, the witness said.

The witness, who was a minor at the time of the crime, claimed she was under immense trauma following her mother's arrest and she still carries emotional scars.

Vidhie Mukerjea admitted she was called by the Mumbai police, which probed the case initially, and then by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for questioning. The probe agencies asked her questions and she replied to them, she told the court.

She, however, denied recording any statement before the central agency or the police.

The witness claimed she was made to sign on a bunch of documents, including a copy of emails (of her alleged conversation with Bora) and blank sheets at CBI's office.

When the statement, part of the CBI chargesheet, was shown to Vidhie Mukerjea during the court deposition, she explicitly stated it was "never recorded by me or under my instruction".

Therefore, it is correct to say the statement annexed in the chargesheet is "forged and fabricated", the witness said while responding to a question of defence lawyer Ranjeet Sangle.

Vidhie Mukerjea argued that if such a forged statement has been recorded "under my name there would be ulterior motives and malafide intentions".

She contended that somebody had forged and fabricated her statement to falsely implicate her biological parents -- Indrani Mukerjea and Sanjeev Khanna -- in the case.

The witness recalled Bora had introduced herself to her as Indrani Mukerjea's "sister".

Initially Bora and Indrani were extremely close and disputes between them started only after Rahul, son of Peter Mukerjea, started visiting their Worli flat in central Mumbai, she said.

According to Vidhie Mukerjea, the situation worsened when the family came to know Rahul was consuming hard drugs and Bora, too, had got into it.

Vidhie Mukerjea told the court she had last seen Bora at a family wedding in Goa in 2011, but was in touch with her through emails till 2013.

It is the prosecution's case that Bora (24) was strangled to death in a car by her mother Indrani Mukerjea, her then driver Shyamvar Rai (who later turned approver in the case) and Khanna in April 2012. Her body was burnt and disposed of at a forest in adjoining Raigad district.

The murder came to light in 2015 after Rai spilled the beans about the crime following his arrest in another case linked to the Arms Act. Following the revelations, police arrested Indrani Mukerjea and her former husbands Khana and Peter.

The prosecution has alleged that after the murder, Indrani Mukerjea would send e-mails from Bora's account to show she was still alive.

The witness painted a grim picture of Peter Mukerjea's family behaviour following the arrest of her mother in August 2015.

Vidhie Mukerjea claimed relatives visiting their house, fought over Indrani's belongings, including perfumes, and bags.

She alleged Rabin Mukerjea intimidated her, forcing her to choose between the Mukerjea "clan" and her mother, threatening to disown and disentitle her from family properties if she didn't side with them.

The witness further testified that after her mother's arrest, her ancestral jewellery worth crores and bank savings of more than Rs 7 crore was "siphoned off".

Vidhie claimed a new bank locker was opened in the names of Rahul and Rabin Mukerjea to store the "stolen" jewellery.

The witness testified that money and jewellery were stolen prior to the arrest of Peter Mukerjea and "I assumed that without the consent of Peter Mukerjea", (his sons) Rahul and Rabin could not have done it.

She claimed Rahul Mukerjea was without a job and Rabin was not in a good financial position, and they desperately needed money for survival.

Additionally, they would have been forced to return the stolen money and ancestral jewellery of Indrani Mukerjea in the event of her walking out of jail.

Therefore, Rahul and Rabin have a clear motive to "falsely implicate Indrani in the present offence", argued Vidhie Mukerjea.

The recording of her testimony would continue on Wednesday.