MUMBAI: Sheena Bora, allegedly killed by her ‘biological mother’ Indrani Mukerjea and others, wanted to take ‘sanyas’, as she was fed up, said her childhood friend, citing an old email exchange, while deposing as a prosecution witness in the criminal trial.A 38-year-old, deposing on Thursday as a witness in the ongoing trial of the Sheena Bora murder case, cited email conversations shared by Bora, who allegedly said she was “fed up with problems and dramas surrounding her life” and wanted to take ‘sanyas’. The witness, a former school friend of Bora in Guwahati, now a housewife, said she used to speak to Bora earlier and also exchanged email communications with her until one day all communication stopped.Indrani and her former husband Sanjiv Khanna and Peter Mukerjea, also now an ex-husband, are all facing trial in the case for the alleged conspiracy and execution of the crime. The witness said Bora had also informed her of Rahul Mukerjea, son of Peter Mukerjea from his previous marriage, and how she wanted to marry him.Sheena was in the same school until Class 12 in Guwahati, said the witness, and she left for Mumbai in 2006. “In Nov 2011, I met Sheena in Guwahati during my wedding. Sheena was there for about a week.” She said Sheena informed her of her plans to marry Rahul the following year and said she was “happy with Rahul”. The witness said that to the best of her knowledge, Bora never had a good relationship with Indrani. She stated that in one of her emails, Bora had described her difficult ties with Indrani.The witness said she last spoke to Bora on April 15, 2012. “Around April 24 and 25,” she said she received a text message from Sheena’s phone about breaking up with Rahul and her plans to change her phone number. It said Sheena would be going off social media for some time “and I should not worry,” the witness deposed. The phone was switched off when she tried later to call. The prosecution has alleged that after Bora’s death, Indrani allegedly communicated via her devices.She also said Rahul contacted her when Bora did not return after he dropped her in Bandra to shop with Indrani and that everyone asked him not to worry since she was with Indrani. The CBI case is that Bora (24) was allegedly strangled to death in a car by her mother Indrani Mukerjea, her then driver Shyamvar Rai (who later turned approver in the case), and Khanna in April 2012. Her body was allegedly burnt and disposed of in a forest in nearby Raigad. Peter was not in India then, said the prosecution, but in touch with Indrani from the UK and was also later arrested in 2015 in the case for alleged conspiracy. The police arrested Indrani and Sanjeev in Aug 2015.Indrani’s defence counsel Ranjeet Sangle began cross-examining the witness. It will continue on Friday.
About the Author
