Mikhail's claims, Siddhartha Das and a suitcase: New revelations in the Sheena Bora murder case

Former INX Media CEO Indrani Mukerjea has now been slapped with fresh charges of attempt to murder and will be presented in court on Monday along with her ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna as their remand comes to an end. CNN-IBN reports that Vidhie Mukerjea, daughter of Indrani and Khanna, appeared in court on Monday morning. [caption id=“attachment_2414408” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Police seize suitcase from residential premises of Indrani and Peter Mukerjea in Mumbai’s Worli area on Sunday. PTI[/caption] Meanwhile, the police has confirmed that the death threats alleged by Sheena’s brother Mikhail Bora were genuine and he was in Mumbai around 24 April, 2012 when his sister was killed. Since the arrest on 25 August of Indrani, wife of former media tycoon Peter Mukherjea, Mikhail has repeatedly claimed that his life was threatened and alleged that his mother had plotted to eliminate him like Sheena. Living up to his claims, he provided some evidences to the investigators, which Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria said were being verified. Reports suggest that the police even found a suitcase in Peter’s garage that was meant for Mikhail to be dumped in after he was murdered. “It’s not clear, however, why Indrani and her alleged accomplices did not remove the suitcase, which an officer claimed she and Sanjeev had bought,” reports The Telegraph. Officials in the investigating team, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the Indrani and Khanna had allegedly called Mikhail to Mumbai in the last week of April in 2012 and kept him at a hotel at Worli. They said that Mukherjea and Khanna had called him to Mumbai to settle some family issues and served him some soft drinks in a hotel which were laced with sleeping medicines. Leaving him at the hotel, Mukherjea, Khanna and driver Shyam Rai allegedly murdered Sheena on 24 April, the officials said, adding that when the trio returned, Mikhail had fled. Mikhail said he had regained consciousness, left the hotel and fled from Mumbai to Guwahati. The Mumbai Police has claimed that they have a fair idea of the motive of murder. However, they have remained tight-lipped about it. The police say they are trying to look for clues and probing the money trail to find the exact reason behind Sheena’s murder. Reports suggest that the financial transactions between Indrani and Khanna could lead the police to more information and in turn, the motive behind the murder. Khanna is alleged to have been present in the car where Sheena was strangled to death. He is said to have traveled to Raigad with Indrani to dispose off the body as well. The Mumbai police have also tracked down Siddartha Das, who Indrani claims is the father of Mikhail and Sheena. The Indian Express quoted a senior police officer as saying, “While Indrani has agreed that Sheena is her daughter and not her sister, there are unconfirmed reports about Sheena’s biological father. Das will be approached to ascertain Sheena’s parentage. His DNA samples will be taken and sent for analysis.” While reports earlier suggested Indrani had Sheena and Mikhail out of wedlock, it was later confirmed that Siddartha was married to her and later the couple divorced, after which Siddartha got married again. Mayarani Das, Siddartha’s mother told The Times of India, “Babul (Sidhartha’s pet name) met Indrani when he was working in Shillong and later moved in with his in-laws in Guwahati. I am shocked and hurt by the news of Sheena’s death.” Even as the police continue to track down and question people connected to Sheena Bora and Indrani, the police intend to recreate the entire crime scene. Now the police is pinning their hopes on the outcome of the forensic and DNA test reports of the victim and the accused which are expected by next week. with agency inputs