Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday said the deposition of a police inspector giving details of disclosures made by approver Shyamwar Rai during his interrogation in the Sheena Bora murder case cannot be admitted as evidence.
A single-judge Bench of Justice Sadhana Jadhav made the observation while hearing a petition by key accused Indrani and Peter Mukerjea in the case, who have moved court challenging the evidential value of the deposition of a police inspector who had questioned Shyamwar Rai, Indrani’s former driver, after his arrest by in 2014.
Rai was arrested for illegal possession of firearms but ended up telling the police during custodial interrogation about Indrani’s daughter Sheena Bora’s murder too, and led the police inspector to the spot in Raigad where the body was disposed of. Rai turned approver last year and his statement was recorded before a magistrate under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
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According to the Mukerjeas’ plea, the prosecution can only rely on Rai’s statement and not on what he has allegedly revealed to the police during his interrogation. Indrani and Peter claimed the testimony of PI Ganesh Dalvi was in violation of the law on admissibility of evidence, to which Justice Jadhav agreed and said Mr. Dalvi cannot be considered as an independent witness.
The HC directed the trial court to resume the trial in case. Prime accused Indrani Mukerjea, her husband Peter and her ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna are facing trial for Sheena’s murder in April 2012.