How to save the other Sheena Boras?

The Sheena Bora murder case may shock the conscience of most of the law abiding community. The facts unravelled by the Mumbai Police square, however, with the abominable greed and sex that have come to acquire a vice-like grip over modern life. It is futile to seek which of the two evils had the upper hand in this particular sordid story. We should be mature enough to understand that monstrosities like this will continue to happen, as they have, in the course of human history. It behoves us not to get excited but rather attempt to build sufficient safeguards in each family so that the incidence of spouse abuse and child abuse are brought down to the minimum. It is equally important to fuse adequate deterrence into our criminal justice system - whose reputation is at its nadir right now. Somehow or the other, the common man has come to believe - rightly, according to many cynics among us - that "justice" was a vague concept of one dimension that successfully discriminated between the rich and poor, the latter bearing the brunt of investigation and penalties.

There are two principal actors here: the Mumbai Police and the ravenous media. The former has been extremely active, and according to grapevine, it has floated inspired leaks. I don't know whether this is a valid charge or not. To expect, however, that leaks will not occur in a high-profile investigation like this is asking for the moon. As long as they do not deflect investigation along unintended lines, rumours and speculation, being the spice of life, will play a role. It is preposterous to try to identify all the mischievous forces at play.

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This is why, the second actor, viz, the media has a responsibility to contain its zeal and ensure sensationalism is kept to the minimum. It should understand that the common man is no longer dumb, and he is shrewd enough to sift even the most complicated facts.

All reports that have appeared till now show the Mumbai Police in good light. The force, under a decisive leader that Rakesh Maria is, has ferreted out many facts. It is still pursuing many leads, which may throw up enough facts to connect the dots. The impression now is that Indirani and her earlier husband Sanjeev Khanna were the prime movers, and Shyam Rai, the driver of the vehicle that was used to ferry Sheena, either drugged or dead, was a willing or compromised accomplice.

There are many mountains to climb before the case can go to court with a police chargesheet. Pace has to be maintained by the investigating officer to beat the statutory 90-day deadline - which may or may not apply here, depending on credible facts established - to wrap up the first part of the investigation, so that the three arrested accused remain in custody and not released prematurely on bail. A preliminary chargesheet does not tie up the hands of the police from continuing with the investigation. The Criminal Procedure Code does not ban a further investigation. This does not, however, give the police the licence to carry on indefinitely. The committal magistrate, before whom the FIR was filed, has enough authority to intervene so that no undue harassment is caused tithe accused.

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Before they can rest on their oars, the Mumbai Police has two arduous tasks. The first is to collect whatever physical evidence is still available, more than three years after the horrific crime. The corpus delicti (Sheena's body or its readily identifiable parts) may not be available. Focussed forensic examination can still resurrect pieces to establish her DNA and match it with any available evidence that is documented and whose credibility cannot be questioned. The second endeavour will have to be one of collecting enough material to prove the motive for the crime and satisfy the court of its strength. Or else, the whole case could get diluted. This is going to be the most difficult part of the investigation.

Speed of investigation is certainly required. But that cannot be at the cost of standards of evidence, which the judge will definitely look for in a case of homicide that this certainly is. The padding up of evidence - the usual police practice - has to be shunned. If there are still gaps, it is for the judge to fill, by ordering further investigation. We must remember that the investigator is not omniscient and cannot fill in all details. In the final analysis, what we need from him are evidence of hard work and integrity. Nothing more, nothing less.