Bombay HC says no to CBI, green lights Netflix's Indrani Mukerjea docu-series

The Bombay High Court has dismissed the Central Bureau of Investigation's plea seeking to halt the release of the Netflix docu-series, 'The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth'.

The docu-series which delves into the disappearance of Indrani Mukerjea's daughter Sheena Bora was scheduled to premiere on Netflix on February 23.

The CBI had filed a petition in the high court, seeking a stay on its release till the trial in the case is complete.

Last week, Netflix told the Bombay High Court that it would not release the series till February 29.

Earlier, the CBI had approached a special court in Mumbai seeking a stay on the documentary series. However, the court on February 20 rejected the probe agency's plea.

The CBI then moved the Bombay High Court seeking to halt the release of the series.

During the earlier hearing on February 22, a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Manjusha Deshpande directed the makers of the series to hold a special screening of the series for the CBI, reported PTI news agency.

Senior counsel Ravi Kadam, appearing for Netflix, informed the court that five witnesses have been interviewed in the series, including Indrani's son Mikhail (Sheena's brother) and Vidhie Mukerjea, Indrani's daughter with Peter Mukerjea.

Kadam said the statements of three witnesses from these five are yet to be recorded by the trial court.

According to the CBI, 89 out of the 237 witnesses have been examined so far before the trial court.

Indrani Mukerjea was released on bail in May 2022 after she was held in custody for more than six years.

It was alleged that Mukerjea strangled her daughter Sheena Bora in 2012 with the help of her former husband Sanjeev Khanna and her then driver Shyamvar Rai. Investigators said the body was kept overnight in the car at Marlow.

The corpse was allegedly moved the next day to a forest outside Mumbai and set on fire.

Indrani Mukerjea's then husband, Peter Mukerjea, knew of the conspiracy, but the alleged murder was only discovered three years later.

The murder came to light in 2015 after Shyamvar Rai revealed about the killing following his arrest in another case.

The other accused in the case, Rai, Khanna and Peter Mukerjea, are also out on bail.