Saw Byculla Jail officials mercilessly thrashing woman prisoner, Indrani Mukerjea tells Mumbai court

Mumbai: Indrani Mukerjea, a key accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, had reportedly told a Mumbai court that she saw Byculla Jail officials mercilessly thrashing a female prisoner who later succumbed to her injuries. 

Manjula Shetye, the woman prisoner, was dragged by jail officials with a saree, which was draped around her neck like a 'dupatta', she told the court, according to NDTV.

According to an FIR lodged by the Byculla jail inmates, a cane was inserted in Shetye's private parts.

Mukerjea, a former media entrepreneur, had alleged that the Byculla Jail officials had also threatened her with the "same consequence" as Shetye if she gave a statement against the jail administration. 

The Mumbai Police, investigating the case, had said that Manju Shetye, whose death sparked the protests in the prison, was allegedly tortured and a stick was inserted in her private parts.

Manju, 45, died at the government-run JJ Hospital on Friday night.

The Nagpada police, investigating the case, filed an offence of murder against the jail staff.

Gunjan Mangla, the lawyer of Indrani, had filed an application in the court saying when she went to meet the former media executive she told her that she was beaten up by the jail officials after the death of the woman prisoner.

Following Manju's death, the enraged inmates rose in protest on Saturday, some of them went up to the prison's terrace while others made a bonfire of newspapers and documents inside the premises to express their anger.

Later, the Nagpada police booked nearly 200 inmates of the Byculla jail, including Indrani, on charges of rioting, unlawful assembly, assault on a public servant and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Gunjan said Indrani requested her to bring the incident to the notice of the court and seek her production to lodge a complaint against the jail officials.

When judge JC Jagdale asked the lawyer if Indrani wants to file an FIR, she said "yes".

An official from the prison department had alleged that Indrani "instigated" the inmates by asking them to shun food and "use their children as shields" when prison staffers tried to stop them from agitating and gathering together.

Meanwhile, six jail staffers had been suspended and police registered a case under IPC section 302 (punishment for murder) against them.

The jail, located in the heart of the city, houses around 251 inmates.

Mukerjea was imprisoned in 2015 on charges of murdering her daughter, Sheena Bora, three years earlier.