Indrani Mukerjea discharged from hospital, back in Byculla jail

The state prisons department has ordered an inquiry to find out how Mukerjea fell ill in the jail.

MUMBAI: Former media tycoon Indrani Mukerjea, arrested on charges of killing her daughter Sheena Bora, was on Wednesday discharged from the JJ Hospital and taken back to the Byculla prison. The 46- year-old was admitted to the State-run hospital on Friday. She had been brought in a "semi-conscious" condition from her cell in the Byculla Jail in south Mumbai. 

She was discharged after her health improved on Wednesday. The state prisons department has already ordered an inquiry to find out how Mukerjea fell ill in the jail.

Indrani's health had deteriorated after she had an overdose of anti-depressants, which were not prescribed to her, the JJ Hospital authorities had said on Tuesday. She underwent a series of medical tests in the hospital. 

Her urine samples were sent for analysis at a forensic laboratory and after receiving its report, the hospital authorities said she had an overdose of anti-depressants that were not prescribed to her.

"The reports of her urine sample showed a significant increase in the level of benzodiazepine, a class of anti-depressants," a doctor from the hospital had said, quoting from reports of the Forensic Science Laboratory at Kalina.

"The medicine prescribed to her is amitriptyline, which is an anti-depressant, but certainly does not belong to the benzodiazepine class of drugs. How she had an overdose of it (benzodiazepine) will be investigated by the police. Though doctors prescribe the medicines, they are administered by the jail staff," a doctor had said.

The IG (prisons) will submit the report to the department after completing the inquiry.

Mukerjea, the co-founder of INX Media, is the prime accused in her daughter Sheena Bora's murder case. 25-year, Sheena Bora, was allegedly killed and her body disposed of in a forest area in the neighbouring Raigad district in April 2012. Mukerjea, her former husband Sanjeev Khanna and driver Shyamvar Rai were arrested for the crime. Rai has turned an approver (prosecution witness) in the case.