Bombay High Court watches Netflix series on Indrani Mukerjea; rejects CBI plea seeking stay on release

The Bombay High Court on Thursday rejected the application filed by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) seeking stay on the release of the documentary series "The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth" [CBI v. Netflix India & Ors.].A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Manjusha Deshpande watched the show and found nothing prejudicial in it against the ongoing trial in the murder case of Sheena Bora where CBI has booked Mukerjea as the prime accused."We didn't think there is anything. We initially thought there maybe something and hence we also saw (the series). Public perception is the least of our concerns. What even she (Indrani) has said (in the series), everything is in public domain. Honestly we have not found anything that goes against the prosecution. We felt that you had a genuine apprehension and, therefore, we gave you the opportunity to view the series and we did not even let the other party argue on that day. You cannot presume the accused to be guilty," the bench said. .The CBI approached the High Court after the special CBI court had rejected its application to stay the release of a documentary series.The CBI submitted that the series contains interviews with the accused and some witnesses as well.Additional Solicitor General Devang Vyas, appearing for the agency, argued that since the CBI had seen only the trailer, it was not aware of how many witnesses were shown in the series.The High Court then suggested Netflix on February 22 to hold a screening for the lawyers and the judges involved so that they can view the series and take a call. The release of the series was consequently postponed by Netflix..After watching the series, the bench stated that it did not find anything prejudicial to the trial and proceeded to reject the application..Netflix was represented by Senior Advocate Ravi Kadam. The producer of the series was represented by advocate Abhinav Chandrachud. .Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.