Peter files another application for bail

His lawyer says Mukerjea had nothing to do with Sheena’s bail

Former media baron Peter Mukerjea, who was arrested last year, for his alleged role in the high-profile murder mystery of Sheena Bora, on Wednesday moved an application in the special CBI court seeking bail. This is the second time that Mukherjee has applied for bail.

Abhad Ponda, the counsel who appeared for Mukerjea informed special Judge HS Mahajan that the CBI, which is investigating the case has in its charge sheet termed him a ‘conspirator’ in the murder of Sheena, but at the same time Ponda claimed that the agency has no concrete material that can prove Mukerjea guilty.

He also claimed that the agency has no direct evidence against Mukerjea; rather the entire case has been built on the basis of two ‘circumstantial’ evidences that before the murder of Sheena, Mukerjea had exchanged several phone calls with his wife and the prime accused Indrani. And the second circumstantial evidence that CBI has mentioned in the charge sheet is that Mukerjea ‘disliked’ Sheena.

In a bid to refute the allegations against Mukerjea, his counsel clarified that prior to the murder, Mukerjea had been in Italy along with his step daughter Vidhi (Sanjeev Khanna and Indrani’s daughter). He informed the court that during this period Mukerjea exchanged several phone calls with Indrani since she was concerned about Vidhi and wanted to be updated about her and also that the conversations of Mukerjea, Indrani and Vidhi during this period were personal. He also argued that since CBI had framed charges against Mukerjea saying that the phone calls were exchanged during ‘odd hours in the night’, Ponda pointed out that since Mukerjea was in Italy and Indrani in India, the time zones are different, hence the odd hours.

Speaking about the ‘dislike’ factor, Ponda argued that Mukerjea did not dislike Sheena, rather he disliked the ‘method of relationship’ between Sheena and Rahul. The counsel said that Mukerjea was upset with Rahul since he wanted Rahul to become financially stable before getting into any relationship. He also informed the court that Mukerjea supported Sheena and Rahul’s relationship and also their engagement and it was Indrani who was against them and often ‘quarrelled’ with Mukerjea over this.

Ponda also tendered copies of several emails shared between Mukerjea, Rahul and Sheena in support of his argument.

He argued that if his client Mukerjea was arrested based on the phone calls, then the agency should also make the city’s joint commissioner of police Deven Bharti, a co-accused since he had also exchanged several phone calls with Indrani, prior to the murder.