File photo of Indrani Mukerjea's husband Peter Mukerjea who was arrested by the CBI in Mumbai on Thursday in connection with the Sheena Bora murder case. (PTI Photo)
Rahul Mukerjea, son of former media baron Peter Mukerjea, today said that charges against his father in the Sheena Bora murder case were "outrageous".
"Charges against him (Peter Mukerjea) are absolutely outrageous," said Rahul Mukerjea as he emerged from the CBI office in South Mumbai this morning, where he spent last night after requesting the sleuths to let him do so.
Peter Mukerjea, husband of key accused Indrani Mukerjea, was on Thursday arrested by CBI, which thereafter filed its chargesheet in the case in a magistrate court in Mumbai.
Peter Mukerjea is charged with murder and criminal conspiracy. He has also been accused of destroying evidence and lying to protect his wife Indrani.
Seeking Peter Mukerjea's remand, CBI had told the court yesterday that he was allegedly involved in the conspiracy with his wife and had played an active and important role in the commission of the offence and also misled his son Rahul to hide the fact that Sheena Bora was murdered.
Rahul, who was in a relationship with Sheena Bora, had said yesterday that Peter's arrest had come as a "shock" for him.
"I don't believe he knew (anything about the murder)... otherwise I wouldn't be here," he had told reporters outside the court.
The probe agency had also told the court that Peter was in continous conversation with Indrani prior to, during and after the gruesome murder.
Suggesting a financial angle to the alleged murder of the 24-year-old in April 2012, the chargesheet said that fear of Sheena Bora inheriting the entire property of her and her husband in the event of the victim's marriage to Peter's son Rahul was reportedly the prime motive for Indrani to do away with her daughter.
Indrani Mukerjea, who was said to have a soft corner for Vidhie, her daughter by former husband Sanjeev Khanna, feared that the "entire property might go to Sheena and Rahul if they were married," the chargesheet said.
In this context, the chargesheet added, "she planned a conspiracy with Khanna and her driver Shyam Rai to kill Sheena Bora".
CBI had submitted before court that Rahul and Sheena were about to get married and, "after that, she (Sheena) could have got a share of property". The investigative agency added that they were "looking into this (angle)".
The probe agency told the court that Rahul had recorded his conversation with Peter in which his father told him that he has spoken to Sheena and she was in the US.
The magistrate court had yesterday remanded Peter Mukerjea to CBI custody till Monday (November 23) while transferring the case against Indrani Mukerjea, Sanjeev Khanna and Shyam Rai to the sessions court for trial, where jail officials were directed to produce the three on December 3.