Defending his father Peter Mukerjea who has been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for being involved in the Sheena Bora murder case, Rahul Mukerjea on Sunday said he was certain of his father's innocence, but said this was not the time to compromise the case.
"See, I can't give reasons at the moment because I don't want to compromise the case that is being investigated. But, needless to say my father is innocent and I am pretty sure of that, in fact I am certain of that," Rahul told media before meeting his father.
However, according to the chargesheet filed by the CBI, Rahul found Indrani Mukerjea (the prime accused) and Peter's initial responses to be evasive and contradictory, which prompted him to put them on record.
It was on the basis of Rahul's evidence that CBI arrested Peter.
Earlier, the CBI said that while it had earlier booked under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), he had also been additionally charged under Sections 302 and 364, and would be prosecuted accordingly. It said that four serious charges have been levelled against him.
The sensational chargesheet also stated that besides the financial dispute, the motive behind Sheena's murder could have been her 'relationship' with Rahul, which had irked Indrani.
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The CBI alleged in court that Indrani and Peter hatched the murder plot in early 2012. Indrani returned to India on April 23, 2012 while Peter stayed back in the UK and returned on April 26, a day after the murder.
"Indrani had purchased a flat for Sheena in Delhi through a gift deed but she later terminated it after learning about Sheena's affair with Rahul. Sheena then allegedly started blackmailing Indrani, threatening to expose her before her social circuit as she had a birth certificate which proved that Indrani was her mother and not sister. Sheena demanded a three bedroom flat in Mumbai from Indrani.
This appeared to have irked Indrani, who then hatched a plan to kill Sheena along with (her former husband) Sanjeev Khanna. Peter played an active and crucial role in the case," stated the 1000-page CBI chargesheet.