Sheena and her brother Mikhail Bora were born out of wedlock.
By Dileep Thekkethil
Siddhartha Das, who claims to be the biological father of Sheena Bora and Mikhail Bora, said on Tuesday that his relationship with their mother Indrani Mukerjea was out of wedlock.
Siddhartha was quoted by Times Now saying “I am ready to go for a DNA test to prove that I am the biological father of both children.”
Siddhartha, who appeared in front of reporters with his face covered said, “We did not marry. She was in a college in Shillong and lived in the city. Through common friends, we came to know each other. We had a live-in relationship. I stayed at her residence. Her parents accepted our relationship.”
“Sheena was born in 1987 and Mikhail in 1988. Sometime later, she dumped me,” said Das, who later moved to Arunachal Pradesh.
He also added that he has been living in Kolkata since 1998 and was never in touch with his two children. An overwhelmed Siddhartha told the media that if his ex-partner is found guilty of killing their daughter Sheena, she should be given the death sentence.
Siddhartha Das was considered by Mumbai police as a very important link in solving the case and his public appearance has given the Mumbai police an edge over the defiant Indrani.
Indrani is said to have told the police once again that her daughter Sheena is alive in the US but was unwilling to contact as she hates her mother. Since the interrogation began, the Mumbai police have said that Indrani was not cooperating. The finding of Siddhartha Das is considered as an important lead for the police to nail former CEO of NewsX, Indrani Mukerjea.
On Monday’s hearing, the court had extended police custody of Indrani and her two accomplices – Sanjeev Khanna, her former husband and his driver Shyam Rai – till September 5. All three are accused of murdering Sheena Bora and gruesomely cutting her into pieces, stocking it in a suitcase and later burning it in the forest to destroy evidence.
The murder of Sheena Bora is believed to have taken place three years ago, but the accused allegedly made false claims that her daughter, who was introduced to others as her sister, went to the US for higher studies.
Indrani is also facing a separate case for attempting to murder Mikhail Bora – Sheena’s sibling – by giving him drugged drinks. Mikhail told media that he is fortunate to be alive as he left the place early on the fatal day his sister got murdered.
Police are yet to get hold of the belongings of Sheena such as her clothes’ and mobile phone, which they believe, the accused might have dumped for hiding the murder.
Indrani, the INX media co-founder, is accused in the FIR of strangling her firstborn daughter Sheena inside a car with the help of her former husband Sanjeev Khanna and the driver. Indrani is presently married to Peter Mukerjea, the former CEO of STAR India.
The murder came to light when police arrested Shyam Rai, the driver, for keeping an unlicensed firearm after which he took the officers to the secret burial site inside forest where the police unearthed skeletal remains.