MUMBAI: The police investigation into the sensational murder of Sheena Bora, daughter of Indrani Mukejea, wife of former Star India CEO Peter Mukerjea, threw up many more skeletons in the closet on Thursday.
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Mikhail Fears He Could be Indrani’s Potential Target Mikhail Bora, son of media baron Indrani Mukherjea who was arrested for her alleged role in the murder of her daughter Sheena Bora, on Thursday said he could be the next target of his mother. |
Police have focused their investigation on three aspects — sex, lies and money — in this case, which has put into spotlight the murky personal life of the country’s rich and famous.
The sex angle emerged during Indrani’s interrogation. According to a source, she revealed that Sheena was pregnant before she was allegedly killed by her second husband Sanjeev Khanna and her driver Shyam Rai on April 24, 2012 at Pen in Raigad district, around 60 km from the city.
“Sheena was pregnant with someone very close to Indrani. She had told Indrani that she wanted to give birth. She also told Indrani that the father had parked a lot of money in her name in a foreign bank and she would take the money too,” a source said.
Police are looking at whether Sheena was blackmailing Indrani over the money in question.
A news channel reported that Sheena and her brother Mikhail’s birth certificates were forged. Mikhail’s stated that his grandfather was his father. Mikhail said theories of financial disputes behind the murder cannot be ruled out. It was reported that following police questioning, Mikhail clammed up.
Police have not ruled out an angle of honour killing as both Indrani and Peter were not happy with Sheena’s relations with Rahul, Peter’s elder son and Indrani’s step-son. Police believe that Indrani might have been in desperate need to safeguard her finances and prevent a certain element of personal life going public. Investigation has also revealed that almost everyone who is under lens in this case, had told a lot of lies.
Peter’s lie that only Indrani had disapproved a relationship between Sheena and Rahul was exposed by Rahul himself during the interrogation. “We were in relationship for a year. Both Indrani and Peter did not approve it. We had many confrontations over the relationship,” he told the police.
Rahul had received a text message on his mobile phone from Sheena on April 26, 2012, two days after she was killed, saying she was breaking the relationship. The police believe that Indrani had impersonated the message as a next of her series of lies. Call records and mobile tower tracking showed that Sheena and Indrani’s phones were usually at the same location for a year after Sheena disappeared. It indicates that Indrani could have been using Sheena’s phone during this period. She had told her relatives and Rahul that Sheena was in the US. Kolkata-based Khanna, another accused in this case, told the police that he was sleeping when Sheena got killed. “I was seated on the rear seat of the car with Sheena and Indrani on way to Raigad. I fell asleep soon as I was tired. When I woke up Sheena was lying breathless beside me,” he claimed.
The police said Khanna had planned to eliminate Sheena’s brother Mikhail too as he (Khanna) wanted Sheena’s money to be transferred to Vidhi, his daughter from Indrani.
In his statement to the police, driver Rai has maintained that Indrani had booked a room in a five star hotel and called Khanna. They picked up Sheena from near National College in Bandra. Indrani strangulated Sheena in the car, put her body in a bag and set it on fire. “Indrani insisted over the phone to Sheena that she come alone. Rahul dropped her at the spot and left. Sheena refused to get into the car as she saw Khanna sitting on the rear seat. Indrani pulled her inside and the car took off,” he told police.
A news channel reported that Sheena and Mikhail’s birth certificates were forged. They showed their grandfather as their father.