Indrani Mukerjea: I Tried to Stop Manjula Shetye’s Assault in Jail

Mukerjea has claimed that she was observing a maunvrat when life convict Shetye was being assaulted in Byculla jail.

Inmate Manjula Shetye was murdered in Byculla Jail in Mumbai on 23 June 2017.

(Photos: ANI / Twitter; altered by The Quint)

On 26 September, the Mumbai Police Crime Branch filed a 990-page chargesheet in the Manjula Shetye custodial death case before a magistrate court, which contains the statements of 96 inmates of Byculla Jail, including Indrani Mukerjea, who is a key accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, reported the Hindustan Times.

Mukerjea has now come out and said that she was observing a maunvrat (a vow of silence) when Shetye was being beaten up by at least six members of the Byculla jail staff, reported HT. Mukerjea, whose statement was recorded on 1 September, is now a key witness in the Manjula Shetye case.

Also Read: Manjula Shetye Assault: A Reality Check on Custodial Killings

At 11:15 (on 23 June), constable Aarti Shingne was dragging Shetye towards the first floor, while constable Bindu Naikade was holding her from behind. I saw that the three were followed by jailer Manisha Pokharkar, and constables Shital Shegaonkar, Surekha Gulve and Waseema Shaikh. I saw that Shegaonkar had a stick and she hit Shetye with it on her legs.

Indrani Mukerjea to the <i>Hindustan Times</i>

Mukerjea also said:

Since I was observing <i>maunvrat</i>, I was not speaking to anyone. I gestured to stop Shaikh, but she ignored and headed to the first floor.

Mukerjea also claims to have observed the assault of another jail inmate Fazleen Shaikh on 11 April. Fazleen Shaikh later told the police, as quoted by the Indian Express, “I was told by another inmate that Manjula was warned by being reminded of my assault. Manjula asked me about it and I told her what had happened.”

Manjula Shetye, 45, was serving the last few months of her life sentence, when on 23 June 2017 she was reportedly brutally sexually assaulted to death by the prison staff at Mumbai’s Byculla Jail.

Also Read: Murdered Inmate Manjula Shetye Was A Case Study in Positive Reform