A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court has directed the Airports Authority of India to file a copy of the CCTV footage from Guwahati airport of the morning hours of Jan 5 and also directed it to ascertain the identity of a particular passenger.
lawyer spotted lady who closely resembled Sheena at the airport: Indrani's wild claim
This was after a plea by Indrani Mukerjea, prime accused in the Sheena Bora murder case claiming that a lawyer had spotted a lady who closely resembled Sheena at the airport.
The court has directed the authorities to comply with its order till Feb 2. It is supposed to file the documents in a sealed cover. Special Judge SP Naik - Nimbalkar observed while passing the order that considering the consistent defence of the accused (Indrani - that Sheena is alive) the contention cannot be set aside and opportunity needs to be given to the accused.
Indrani wants CBI to procure CCTV footage and ascertain her identity
Indrani had produced an affidavit by the lawyer and also a video that the lawyer’s colleague purportedly recorded of the woman along with her application. She had sought that CBI procures the CCTV footage and verify who the woman in the footage is. The CBI had responded to the plea and sought its dismissal in a reply it filed before the special court. The agency said in its response that Indrani had made the plea with the mala fide intention to delay the trial as she is out on bail. It said she wants to mislead the court through the application.
Indrani’s ‘tactics’ to prolong the matter: CBI
“It is clearly established based on the evidence placed on record that Sheena Bora was dead and she was killed by the applicant along with others…the alleged wild claims made by the applicant or the advocate is not sustainable and it would amount to a mockery of justice,” its reply stated. The agency also submitted that the DNA report of the skeletons recovered during the investigation clearly establishes that those are of Sheena, which clearly establishes that she is no more. It also pointed to the testimony of Indrani’s former driver and approver in the case - Shyamvar Rai and said it clearly proved that Sheena was killed by the accused persons.
It called the plea Indrani’s ‘tactics’ to prolong the matter and said that the contention is based on “imagination”.
Indrani last year made a similar plea when she was in prison. She said a jail inmate had told her about spotting Sheena in Srinagar while on a vacation and sought that the CBI probe the matter. She had later not pursued the plea and kept it on hold. The CBI also pointed to this.
