Bombay HC on Indrani Mukerjea's overseas travel plea: If bank work can be done from India, get it done

Indrani Mukerjea. File Pic

On Monday, the Bombay High Court instructed Indrani Mukerjea, the primary accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, to consider conducting bank-related work in Spain and the United Kingdom from India rather than flying there.

Justice SC Chandak, who presided over a single bench, stated that if the work was legitimate and required Mukerjea's physical presence abroad, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) might reconsider her travel request. However, the court advised Mukerjea not to add any new tasks beyond those specified in her appeal to the special CBI court for permission to travel.

Previously, on July 19, a special CBI court permitted Mukerjea to travel to Europe (Spain and the United Kingdom) for 10 days over three months. Mukerjea said that after her divorce from Peter Mukerjea, she needed to update specific bank records and perform other activities.

However, the CBI appealed this verdict at the high court, resulting in an interim stay of the special court's decision. On Monday, CBI advocate Shreeram Shirsat told the court that the agency had checked with banks in the UK and Spain and discovered that the essential payments could be made electronically, eliminating the need for Mukerjea to fly. He noted that the agency was still waiting for a response from one more bank.

Mukerjea's lawyer, Ranjeet Sangle, contended that she needed to reactivate her dormant bank accounts in Spain before she could conduct online transactions. He also mentioned a letter Mukerjea sent to the Spanish Embassy outlining her obligations.

Justice Chandak noted that the letter included extra activities, such as repairs to a residential property, that were not specified in the initial application. This caused concerns in the court, with Justice Chandak saying, "You (Indrani) have generated extra work. This was not mentioned in the application filed before the special court. This raises doubts and our eyebrows...Prima facie, such conduct will act against you."

The case has been continued until August 27, with the court demanding that Mukerjea and the CBI present a list of activities she needs to do in the United Kingdom and Spain, as well as an assessment of whether these can be completed from India.

"If the tasks can be done from here, get it done. Both sides, I am telling. When the task is bonafide and genuine, if safety and security are not an issue, let it be," the court said.

The temporary stay on the special court's order has been extended until the next hearing. The special court had earlier imposed limits on Mukerjea's travel, including a requirement to visit the Indian Embassy or its allied diplomatic mission offices at least once during her stay and pay a Rs 2 lakh security deposit.

Indrani Mukerjea was arrested in August 2015 after the murder of her daughter, Sheena Bora, was discovered. She was released on bond in May 2022. Bora was allegedly strangled in April 2012, and her body was later disposed of in a forest in Raigad district. The crime was only discovered in 2015, following an investigation into another case.