Peter Mukerjea released on bail 4 yrs after arrest

Former media baron Peter Mukerjea, accused in Sheena Bora murder case, was released from Arthur Road jail on Friday evening.

Former media baron Peter Mukerjea, accused in Sheena Bora murder case, was released from Arthur Road jail on Friday evening.

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Four years after his arrest, Mukerjea was granted bail by Bombay high court on February 6 on medical grounds and also because the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) failed to prove his involvement in Sheena Bora’s alleged murder.

However, the court had stayed its order by six weeks at the request of CBI to approach the Supreme Court to challenge the order. But CBI did not approach the Supreme Court and so Mukerjea was granted bail. Even after obtaining a stay, the agency could not obtain restraining orders from the apex court against the release.

As the six-week stay ended, Mukerjea’s family and the legal team began the process for his release on Friday. After completion of all the formalities, Mukerjea was released from Arthur Road jail around 8.30pm.

Mukerjea is one of four accused in Bora’s murder.

The others are his ex-wife Indrani Bora, Indrani’s ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna and Shyamvar Rai, who used to work as a driver for Indrani and Mukerjea. Rai has turned approver.

Mukerjea and Indrani Bora were granted a divorce in October last year. Bora — who was Indrani’s daughter, but was introduced as her sister — went missing in 2012. According to the police, Indrani and Khanna strangled Bora on April 24, 2012, and disposed of her body the next day in Gagode village of Raigad district. The police learnt of the murder from Rai when he was arrested in a separate case in August 2015.

While granting bail to Mukerjea, Justice Nitin Sambre had observed, “From the call data record [showing calls between Mukerjea, Indrani and Khanna], it is difficult to infer that the same was in connection with the commission of the crime.”

On the evidence presented in Mukerjea’s emails, Sambre had said they didn’t prove criminal intent. Finally, the judge noted that at the time of Bora’s disappearance and on the date of her alleged murder, Mukerjea was in England. “No explanation is forthcoming why five statements of the approver were required to be recorded and why the applicant [Mukerjea] was implicated and arrested six months later [after the investigation into the other accused was almost complete],” said Sambre.