Wednesday, January 19 2005 10:15 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: The prosecution in the Best Bakery case yesterday (Jan 18, 2005) told the court that two instalments of different amounts were deposited in the account of prime witness Zaheera Sheikh, a week before she deposed in the trial held at a fast track court in Vadodara.

Zaheera, however, said that she did not remember if any money was paid into her account with Bank of Baroda at Vadodara on May 10, 2003 before her deposition on May 17, 2003, when she was declared hostile.

The prosecution's case is that Rs 45,000 was deposited in her account in two instalments of Rs 35,000 and Rs 10,000.

The prosecution also pointed out that the testimonies of Zaheera's siblings were concluded by May 9, 2003.

The prosecution added that Rs 10,000 was paid into Zaheera's account at Vadodara on May 27, 2002.

The court then asked the prosecution whether it knew how much money currently exists in Zaheera's account at Vadodara to which the special prosecutor Manjula Rao wrote down an amount on a chit, which was not disclosed before the court.

The prosecution also asked Zaheera whether it was true that cash amounting to Rs 1.9 lakh was deposited in her brother Nasibullah's account with Syndicate bank at Bhayander. Zaheera, however, claimed she had no knowledge about it.

The prosecution also questioned Zaheera about the cash, totalling Rs 1 lakh, which was paid as rent for the two houses that she (Zaheera) and her family had rented out in Mumbai.

Zaheera was asked by the court to produce her two passbooks at the earliest as she denied having any knowledge about the money deposited in her account.