Mumbai inmate death: Assault left 14 injury marks on Shetye’s body, killed her, says prosecution

Special public prosecutor Vidhya Kasle said the injuries on Shetye’s body resulted from the assault that killed her

After three women constables accused in connection with the death of Byculla Jail inmate Manjula Shetye sought bail on Tuesday, the prosecution objected to their plea on Wednesday.

The prosecution said there was enough evidence against the accused in the form of witness statements, which were corroborated by the CCTV camera footage that depicts the accused taking Shetye away. (HT File)

Special public prosecutor Vidhya Kasle said the injuries on Shetye’s body resulted from the assault that killed her. She objected to the defence’s stance that Shetye died owing to a prolonged illness, and not because of the alleged assault perpetrated by jailers. The prosecution contended that there were more than 14 injuries on Shetye’s body, enough to be tied to her death.

On Tuesday, defence lawyer Vaibhav Baghade said there were discrepancies in the prosecution’s case and circumstances surrounding Shetye’s death. 

Six jail staff had moved a bail plea in August. However, on Tuesday, the bail pleas of three were withdrawn. Baghade argued that three other constables — Bindu Naikade, Waseema Shaikh and Surekha Gulve — must be given bail.

He said the state succumbed to the pressure from the Byculla jail inmates and registered a case against six jail staff after Shetye’s death was followed by inmates staging riots at the prison.

The prosecution countered the defence’s argument that the injuries on Shetye’s body were formed owing to post-mortem lividity — the settling of blood under the influence of gravity, which develops early in the period after the post-mortem. The prosecution said the marks resulted from the assault.

The prosecution said there was enough evidence against the accused in the form of witness statements, which were corroborated by the CCTV camera footage that depicts the accused taking Shetye away.

Kasle said she had obtained CCTV camera footage of the jail passage only as no cameras had been installed in the barracks.

The defence had raised questions over the validity of the CCTV camera footage, claiming that it had been doctored and was missing an audio component. The prosecution denied these claims.

The court has now heard both sides.

It reserved the order on the bail plea for November 28.