Zaheera's mother disowns 'statements'

Sehrunissa Shaikh, mother of Zaheera Shaikh, prime witness in Best Bakery case, on Monday disowned the statements made by her during the retrial.

Sehrunissa Shaikh, mother of Zaheera Shaikh, prime witness in Best Bakery case, on Monday disowned the statements made by her during the retrial -- those which the court in Mumbai thinks are false, and for which she is being tried for giving false evidence.

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The trial for giving false evidence conducted by special sessions Judge Abhay Thipsay -- who held Best Bakery retrial -- got underway on Monday with examination of Seherunnisa, by the Judge himself.

Other accused in this trial are Zaheera, her brother Nasibullah and sister Sahira.

The judge, one by one, read out all the statements of Seherunnisa, which are believed by the court to be false and asked her to state her explanations thereon.

But Seherunnisa's explanation, in respect of all these statements, was that they were not made by her.

"Do you want to say that your statements were wrongly recorded," the Judge asked every time and her reply was consistently in the affirmative.

Thipsay indicated, at the end of Monday's proceedings, that he would decide on her case on Tuesday.

But Thipsay rejected this argument, terming it as "ridiculous". The criminal procedure code gives any court the power to try the witnesses for giving false evidence, the Judge held.