A special CBI court in Mumbai on Friday rejected Indrani Mukerjea’s plea for permission to travel to Spain and the United Kingdom for two weeks, saying she could be a “flight risk” as the decade‑old Sheena Bora murder trial nears its conclusion. Special Judge J. P. Darekar noted that only a few witnesses remain and the case has reached a critical “fag end” — the judge’s words for the trial’s final stage — making the possibility that the accused might not return difficult to ignore. The court also pointed out that Mukerjea is a UK national and owns immovable property in both the UK and Spain, raising the prosecution’s concern that “the apprehension… that she is a flight risk cannot be ruled out,” the order said.
Mukerjea had asked the court to release her passport and allow the short foreign trip, saying she faced “severe financial hardship” because bank accounts in the UK and Spain had been dormant for nearly a decade and required her personal presence for biometric verification and reactivation. Her petition also said she needed to update a will registered in Malaga, Spain, to remove former husband Peter Mukerjea as a beneficiary following their divorce, and that the ongoing day‑to‑day trial had prevented her from taking up employment.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) opposed the application, calling it “misconceived, devoid of merits and liable to be dismissed,” and arguing Mukerjea had not shown any “urgent, compelling, unavoidable circumstances” to justify travel abroad. Prosecutors told the court they had already contacted authorities in Spain and the UK, who had offered assistance to complete any formalities, but the court observed Mukerjea had not filed documents showing confirmed appointments with banks or municipal authorities overseas.
Judge Darekar also questioned Mukerjea’s claim of financial distress, noting she had deposited Rs 2 lakh in court while seeking permission to travel. The order follows earlier failed attempts to secure overseas travel; the Supreme Court had previously warned there was “no guarantee” she would return if allowed to leave and had directed the trial court to expedite proceedings.
Mukerjea was arrested in 2015 after the Sheena Bora case emerged. The prosecution alleges Bora was strangled in a car in 2012 by Mukerjea, former husband Sanjeev Khanna and driver Shyamvar Rai, and that her body was later burned in a forest in Raigad district — allegations that came to light after Rai reportedly disclosed details while being questioned in an unrelated Arms Act case.
Original Source: https://www.indiatodayne.in/assam/story/sheena-bora-murder-flight-risk-concern-leads-court-to-deny-indrani-mukerjeas-foreign-travel-plea-1389523-2026-05-10?utm_source=rssfeed
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Publish Date: 2026-05-10 08:34:00
