The Sheena Bora murder case was one of the biggest crime mysteries of India which had all the elements of a Bollywood thriller — a chance interrogation, deceit, a dysfunctional family and a mega showdown. On Wednesday, as the Supreme Court granted bail to former media executive Indrani Mukerjea, the prime accused in 2012 high-profile murder case of her daughter Sheena Bora, the case once again returned to public memory and hogged the limelight.
The court on Wednesday said six-and-a-half years (the duration that Mukerjea has spent in jail) is too long a time and the trial won’t be concluded in the near future. The bench also noted that the case is based on circumstantial evidence and that even if 50 per cent of the witnesses are given up by the prosecution, the trial would not get over soon.
The Sheena Bora episode revolved around a multitude of characters, all of whom had a crucial role to play in her story. News18 breaks down the story and those involved:
Indrani Mukerjea: Prime accused Indrani Mukerjea was born in Guwahati as Pari Bora in 1972. She did her schooling from Guwahati and then went to Shillong for higher education. According to reports, she reportedly got into an affair with Siddhartha Das during her college days and gave birth to Sheena and her brother Mikhail, following which she had fallout with him.
Following this, Indrani met Sanjeev Khanna, another accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, who she married in Kolkata in 1993. They also reportedly gave birth to a daughter, Vidhie Khanna, in 1997.
The relationship between Khanna and Indrani also couldn’t last long as she moved in with the-then CEO of Star TV, Peter Mukerjea, in 2002 while awaiting divorce from Khanna. Both got married in November 2002, and had been living together since then.
According to reports, Indrani started her career as an HR executive, and founded INX Services Private Ltd as a recruitment company in Kolkata.
Almost five years after her marriage with Peter Mukerjea, both of them became the promoter of INX Group. The INX group launched television channels News X, 9X and 9XM, which later suffered major losses and the stakes were sold off by the duo.
Indrani had introduced Sheena Bora and Mikhail Bora to Peter Mukerjea as her siblings, and not children. Peter Mukerjea has claimed that he came to know of the truth only after media reports when Sheena’s death grabbed headlines three years after the incident.
Sheena Bora: Sheena Bora was born to Indrani Mukerjea in Kolkata in 1987. Siddhartha Das, who claims to be Sheena’s father, and Indrani were allegedly unmarried when the latter gave birth to her. Another child, Mikhail Bora, was also born to the couple before Indrani and Siddhartha broke up. In 1989, Indrani took the children to Guwahati, and left them with her parents Upendra Kumar Bora and Durga Rani. In social circles, Indrani introduced Sheena as her sister and not daughter. She was 24 when she was killed.
Mikhail Bora: Indrani Mukerjea’s second child, Mikhail was earlier believed to be a victim in the case but his role came under the lens when reports claimed that he had sent the resignation letter of Sheena Bora to her employer almost 12 days after her death.
Mikhail is the second child of Indrani, born in 1988. He claims to be the real brother of Sheena Bora, born to Indrani’s ex-partner Siddhartha Das.
When questioned by mediapersons before joining the investigation in the case, Mikhail had claimed that he had proof against Indrani and others. After the Mumbai police questioned him in connection with the case, it was revealed that he allegedly sent Sheena’s resignation letter after her death and also kept her social media accounts functioning till three weeks ago. He has also claimed that Indrani had plotted to kill him as well.
Sanjeev Khanna: The other prime accused in the case, Khanna is Indrani’s ex-husband and allegedly killed Sheena, in collusion with Indrani, in a car in 2012. The duo had allegedly strangulated Sheena to death, and later put her body on fire in Raigad.
Indrani and Khanna reportedly got married in 1993 in Kolkata. Four years later, Indrani gave birth to Khanna’s daughter Vidhie in 1997, who later moved in with her mother and Peter Mukerjea and also took their surname. Khanna has also confessed to his role in the murder.
Shyamvar Rai: Indrani Mukerjea’s driver who allegedly aided the murder of Sheena Bora and was the one who blew the lid off the case. He allegedly drove the car inside which Sheena Bora was strangulated by Indrani and Sanjeev Khanna. Rai is also believed to have helped Indrani and Khanna in disposing off Sheena’s body after her death. It was Rai who spilled the beans on how Sheena was picked up by Indrani and Khanna from Bandra area of Mumbai on April 24, 2012, and later strangulated inside the car itself.
Rahul Mukerjea: Peter Mukerjea’s son, Rahul is not believed to have played a role in the murder. He was in a relationship with Sheena Bora until 2012, when she was allegedly murdered. Rahul has claimed that he did try to contact Sheena when she went missing in 2012, but got messages from her number, saying she was settled in US with some other guy and was not interested in getting in touch with him again.
Siddhartha Das: Father of Sheena and Mikhail Bora, he was reportedly in a relationship with Indrani in the late 1980s and claims to have been left by “money-minded” Indrani in 1989. According to Das, who now lives with his family in Kolkata, he had not been in touch with Indrani since the two got separated. Claiming that he never married Indrani, Das agreed to have been in a live-in relationship with her.
Peter Mukerjea: The most high-profile name in the whole case, Peter Mukerjea has been a TV tycoon. He claimed that Sheena and Mikhail were introduced to him by Indrani as her siblings, and not children. Speaking to media after the murder case came to light, Peter said that he did not approve of the alleged relationship between Sheena and his son Rahul. He has also claimed that he did not bother to know much about Sheena and Mikhail as their relationship with Indrani did not matter to him.
He was also arrested for allegedly being part of the conspiracy. He was granted bail by the high court in February 2020. His marriage to Indrani Mukerjea ended during the period of incarceration.
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