Sheena Bora murder case: Former Mumbai police chief Rakesh Maria quizzed by CBI

Mumbai: CBI on Thursday examined three Mumbai Police officials, including former city police chief Rakesh Maria, in connection with Sheena Bora murder case.

Besides Maria, the CBI also questioned Deven Bharti, Joint Commissioner (Law and Order) and Satya Narayan Choudhary, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone-X).

CBI officials said that the three officers were 'examined' as they were part of the initial probe team which investigated the case and arrested Indrani Mukerjea.

The spotlight had fallen on Maria and his crack team after CBI arrested media baron Peter Mukerjea last year. There were allegations that Maria, who was then the police commissioner, had not probed the property angle in the case and not quizzed Mukerjea.

Maria, a 1981-batch IPS officer was removed as Mumbai police Commissioner and replaced by Ahmed Javed, a 1980-batch IPS officer.

Maria was alleged to have taken 'unusual interest' in the Sheena Bora case and frequently visited Khar police station for questioning the accused including Indrani Mukerjea, the wife of Peter.

As various theories floated about the reasons for Maria's transfer, the Maharashtra Home Department had said the changes were made taking into account the law and order factor ahead of the Ganapati festival, dismissing suggestions that had anything to do with the ongoing investigation in the case.

However, former Mumbai Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh, now a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh, had told TV channels that one of the reasons for shifting Maria could be that he was close to Peter Mukerjea.

Former Mumbai police commissioner Julio Ribeiro had said Maria was 'people friendly' but added that investigating a murder case is not the job of a police Commissioner.

Earlier on October 21, CBI had filed its second supplementary chargesheet in the 2012 murder case in a special court and had stated that Sheena's mother and prime accused Indrani had kept her husband Peter Mukerjea updated on phone over the selection of spot for disposal of the body.

The nearly 200-page chargesheet was filed before the court of special CBI judge HS Mahajan.

As per the chargesheet, prime accused Indrani and her husband and former media baron Peter were against the 'intimate relationship' between Sheena, Indrani's daughter from earlier relationship, and Rahul, Peter's son from his first wife.

Peter often used to quarrel with Rahul on the issue as he didn't approve of the relationship between Sheena and his son.

As per the chargesheet, Peter always dissuaded his daughter Vidhi from having any contact with Rahul and Sheena.

The chargesheet had also stated that a month after Sheena's death, Peter wrote an email to Rahul, which read, "Initially, I was okay with your relationship (with Sheena), as I figured that due to economic pressures it would break anyway as Sheena would want more from life and that she would tell you this and leave you if she didn't get it after a while," as per PTI.

Sheena (24) was strangled in a car here in April 2012 allegedly by her mother Indrani, her former husband Sanjeev Khanna and her former driver Shyamvar Rai.

Sheena's body was then dumped in a forest in neighbouring Raigad district.

In its charge sheet filed on November 19 last year, the CBI had named Indrani, Khanna and Rai as accused in the case.

The trio were arrested in August last year after the latter spilled the beans while he was being interrogated in a case pertaining to illegal possession of arms.

He later turned approver in the case.

The CBI had filed a chargesheet against Peter on February 16 for his alleged role in the murder plot. He was arrested on November 19 last year.

According to investigators, Sheena's relationship with Rahul was the possible motive behind her murder apart from certain financial dealings.

(With Agency inputs)