Prosecution declares notary advocate hostile in Sheena Bora murder trial

The prosecution in the Sheena Bora murder case on Monday declared a notary advocate hostile after he refused to identify will documents presented in court, citing that they were photocopies and not originals.

- Revu Suresh

MUMBAI: The advocate had notarized the wills of accused, Sheena Bora's mother Indrani Mukerjea and her former husband, media tycoon Peter Mukerjea, who is also an accused in the case.

In legal proceedings, a witness is declared hostile when they retract or contradict their previous statements, casting doubt on their testimony's reliability.

According to his statement to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the notary advocate had previously affirmed that Indrani and Peter Mukerjea had signed the wills in his presence, bequeathing a jointly owned Delhi flat to Sheena Bora. However, he claimed he could not recall whether the witnesses named in the wills had signed in front of him.