MUMBAI: The prime accused in Sheena Bora murder case, Indrani Mukherjea, will be interrogated in connection with the death of Manjula Shetye, an inmate of Byculla women's prison, minister of state for Home Ranjit Patil told the state legislative Assembly here on Friday.
Patil also assured the House that stern action would be taken against the doctor from JJ Hospital, who gave false report on Shetye's death. NCP deputy leader of the house and former finance minister Jayant Patil, who raised the issue in the House, accused the government of negligent attitude towards prison management and expressed the need to increase the number of prisons.
NCP leader and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said that the women inmates in jails were regularly subjected to sexual assaults and urged the government to conduct an inquiry into the state of prisons across the state.
Shetye, a jail warden serving the last few months of her 14-year jail term for murdering her sister-in-law in 1996, had complained about missing ration from the jail food stock in June, when she was allegedly summoned by jail officials and beaten up brutally. She died on June 24 after which a riot broke out in the jail. Six prison officials including the jailor were arrested in the case after the investigation was handed over to Mumbai Crime Branch. They were granted police remand till Saturday (July 28). The minister's reply came a day before the end of their remand. The officials have applied for bail and the court is likely to hear their bail plea.
Indrani has been named as an accused in rioting case and unlawful assembly inside the jail along with Divya Pahuja, an accused in Haryana gangster Sandeep Gadholi encounter case, and others. However, in their bail plea, jail officials have blamed Indrani for hatching a conspiracy against them.