Though the CBI has started examining documents in the Sheena Bora murder case, the challenge before the agency is to complete the investigation in one and a half months and file a chargesheet as any delay will favour the accused in getting bail.
Another hurdle before CBI officials is that they will have to interrogate the accused in jail, where the room to apply psychological pressure is limited.
The Khar police arrested Indrani Mukerjea on August 25 for the murder of her daughter Sheena Bora. Indrani’s former husband Sanjeev Khanna and driver Shyamwar Rai too have been arrested. The cops exhausted the permissible 14 days of police custody in the case before transferring it to the CBI. Now, the CBI cannot seek the accused’s custody and have to make do with the judicial custody jails after obtaining court permission. The three accused are lodged in different jails.
Cops can procure a maximum of 14 days of custody of a suspect in a criminal case. As per Section 167 of the CrPC, 1973, if a chargesheet is not filed within 90 days of arrest, the accused has the right to get bail.
“Various SC rulings say that a chargesheet cannot be filed when probe is midway. Only when investigation is fully complete can the chargesheet be rational, based on inference drawn from the entire evidence and not part evidence. This shall be to the advantage of the accused, not only during the trial, but also when they file bail application,” said lawyer and former IPS officer Y P Singh.
A Delhi-based special crime branch team visited the Khar police station on Wednesday and collected case evidences along with documents. The team is temporarily stationed in the Mumbai police’s guest house next to Azad Maidan police station and is taking assistance of local CBI units in the probe.