Sheena Bora Case: Bombay HC Reprimands Indrani Mukherjea for Overstepping Travel Permits

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday reprimanded Indrani Mukerjea for exceeding the scope of the trial court’s order that permitted her to travel to the United Kingdom and Spain.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had challenged a special court’s July 19 order, which allowed Mukerjea, who is currently out on bail, to travel to Europe. Mukerjea, a former media executive accused of murdering her daughter Sheena Bora in 2012, was granted permission to travel to the UK and Spain for 10 days within intermittent periods over the next three months.

A single bench of Justice Shyam C Chandak noted that Mukerjea’s recent submissions had exceeded what was originally approved by the trial court.

“Do not go beyond the framework of Para 4 (Petition)…who suggested that your house requires repair. Where is the suggestion? These are missing in your petition and you are trying to add to the scope of the petition. Your submissions lack bonafides,” the judge stated.

On July 19, a special CBI court had allowed Indrani Mukerjea to travel abroad based on an email from her UK counsel, which stated that she needed to pay taxes, settle bills, update her Will, and reactivate a joint bank account in Spain. The email highlighted the necessity of her physical presence for these tasks, including updating her Will to remove Peter Mukerjea, her ex-husband, as a beneficiary following their divorce. Additionally, her presence was required for biometrics at Banco Sabadell Atlantico Marbella Mueva Andalucia, where her account had been deactivated due to inactivity.

However, CBI Special Prosecutor Shriram Shirsat argued that these tasks could be accomplished in India and accused Mukerjea of fabricating reasons to justify her travel. He asserted that government websites allow online payment of taxes and bills and claimed that the trial court was misled about the limitations of the Power of Attorney (POA) given by Mukerjea. A translated copy of the Spanish POA showed that the holder had the authority to carry out these tasks.

Indrani’s counsel, advocate Ranjeet Sangle, countered that the POA authorization was issued when she was married to Peter Mukerjea and now requires re-authorization due to her divorce.

The Bombay High Court then directed Mukerjea to submit a detailed list of the tasks she intends to accomplish during her stay abroad, along with an explanation of how these tasks can be achieved. Similarly, the CBI was asked to prepare a parallel list of tasks that can be completed from India. The matter has been scheduled for further consideration on August 27, 2024.

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