Jigna Vora is a former Indian crime reporter who made headlines in 2011 when he was arrested for his alleged involvement in the murder of renowned journalist Jyotirmoy Dey (better known as J Dey). He was acquitted of all charges in 2018. He has worked for various media such as Free Press Journal, Mid-day, Mumbai Mirror and the Asian Age. He underwent a spiritual transformation while in prison that led him to become a consciousness healer and teacher of Aatmic Consciousness. He is also a professional tarot card reader.
Wiki/Biography
Jigna Jitendra Vora was born in 1974 (age 49 years; in 2023), and he hails from Ghatkopar, Mumbai. He pursued his bachelor’s degree in Law at DG Ruparel College affiliated to the University of Mumbai. He also obtained a diploma in mass communication from KJ Somaiya Institute of Management, Mumbai. At KJ Somaiya, Velly Thevar, his faculty and a renowned crime reporter working for The Times of India, sparked his interest in crime reporting. In 1998, he got married and moved to Bharuch, Gujarat. After separating from her husband, she returned to her mother’s house with her four-year-old son in Garodia Nagar, Ghatkopar in 2004. While raising her son as a single mother, she decided to pursue a career in media.
Old picture of Jigna Vora
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 5″
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Black
Family
Jigna Vora hails from a Gujarati family.
Parents & Siblings
Vora’s mother, Harshaben, died on June 9, 2015 after suffering a heart attack. His father works in Dubai. His grandfather’s name was Tulsidas Hargovindas.
Husband & Son
Jigna Vora got married on 4 December 1998 after her graduation from Ruparel College. It was an arranged marriage at the behest of her parents for which she had left an internship with a prominent law firm. Her parents have told that her husband is an engineer and runs a printing press in Bharuch, Gujarat. Later, she found out the allegations were false leading to a chaotic marriage and then a breakup. He has a son. In 2009, when her son was eight years old, Vora enrolled him in a Panchgani boarding school.
Religion/Religious Views
He is a devoted follower of spiritual guru Satish Kaku, founder and trustee of the Swarg Foundation. He also underwent a spiritual transformation while he was behind bars for his alleged involvement in J Dey’s murder, following his conversation with BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur.
Address
Jigna Vora resides at Savita Building, Flat Number 11, 2nd Floor, Srimad Raj Chandra Marg, Off Tilak Road, Near Ashirwad Hospital, Ghatkopar East, Mumbai 77, India.
Career
After completing his formal education, he got his first job as a court reporter at the Free Press Journal (FPJ) in November 2005; he worked there for 10 months. His first assignment was to cover the Abu Salem gangster case in the TADA court located inside the Jalan Arthur Jail. He made a name for himself in crime reporting over the next six years where he went from rookie reporter to deputy bureau chief at the English broadsheet. Jigna joined Mumbai Mirror as a court reporter in 2006, where her assignment was at the sessions court in Kala Ghoda, Mumbai. He covered his first underworld story in December 2005 when Sujata Nikalje, wife of dreaded gangster Chhota Rajan, was arrested for extorting threats against a builder under MCOCA. After that, Vora started working for Mid-Day as a senior reporter for the sessions court. At Mid-Day he worked with J Dey. His big story about controversial encounter expert Pradeep Sharma sent shockwaves across the country. In May 2008, he joined Asian Age, the publishing division of Deccan Chronicle. As a journalist, he filled in the stories of various accused such as Fahmeeda (accused of the bomb blast), Maria Susairaj (accused in the sensational Neeraj Grover murder case), Jaya Chheda (accused of killing her husband), etc. Among the stories that garnered her praise were a series of reports on the killing of gang member Fareed Tanasha in Tilaknagar, an article on the activities of a right-wing terrorist group from Gujarat, and a land scam in Andheri that had a landlord who had been declared dead at its center. several times despite being alive and kicking all this time. In 2011, before being arrested for his alleged involvement in J Dey’s murder, he worked as the Deputy Head of Zaman Asia Bureau. After undergoing a spiritual transformation in prison, he became a consciousness healer and teacher of Aatmic Consciousness. She holds home meditation classes and offers personal consultations on healing techniques. She is also a professional tarot card reader who holds sessions at her home.
Murder of J Dey
On 11 June 2011, J Dey was killed in a shooting by unknown assailants in Hiranandani Gardens, Powai, Mumbai. Later, the assailant was identified as assassin Don Chotta Rajan. On November 25, 2011, Jigna, who was then working as the Deputy Head of Zaman Asia Bureau, was taken into police custody for his alleged role in the sensational murder. Police alleged that Vora gave Rajan important details about Dey, including his residence and his motorcycle’s number plate, to plan the murder. He was charged under various sections of the IPC such as murder, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence, and the Arms Act. Investigating officer Himanshu Roy cited phone records showing phone calls between Rajan and Vora to level the murder charges against him. The police also alleged that Vora’s professional rivalry was the reason behind Dey’s murder. However, the Police have no solid evidence to link him. She is incarcerated in the Byculla Women’s Jail in Mumbai. He remained in prison for nine months. On 27 July 2012, Jigna Vora was granted bail by a special court as she had a child to care for and was a single parent. Special MCOCA court judge SM Modak also stated that he has no previous criminal record. In 2018, the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) court convicted Chotta Rajan and eight other accused in the case and acquitted them, while Vora was acquitted due to lack of evidence.
Salary
He earned over Rs 1 lakh as Deputy Bureau Chief of Zaman Asia.
Facts/Trivia
- His colleagues used to call him JV.
- In an interview, he revealed that he does not smoke or drink alcohol.
- On 11 May 2018, Himanshu Roy, who had been investigating J Dey’s murder, shot himself at his residence. According to the news, he has been suffering from cancer for a long time. First, he was diagnosed with cancer in his ankle in 2015, which later spread to his brain, causing him to suffer from depression. At the time of his death, he was serving as the ADGP (Establishment) of Maharashtra.
- There were many rumors about Jigna before he was arrested. In August 2011, a journalist friend told Vora that there were rumors about her extramarital affair with Dey and that she had become pregnant and refused to accept him and the child. It is also said that a professional rivalry arose between Vora and Dey over Rajan’s assistant Farid Tanasha, which led him to plot to kill Dey. Sources alleged that Vora had suddenly booked a ticket to Sikkim on June 7, 2011 and left without permission when he had booked the ticket two months earlier, and some of his colleagues, including Zaidi, who had given leave, were aware of the trip. .
- In 2019, he published the book Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison which chronicled his detention in connection with J, Dey’s murder, his time in prison, court trials, and his years as a crime reporter.
- Jigna also practices healing, Tarot card reading, and astrology.
- In 2023, Netflix released a drama series, Scoop, based on Jigna Vora’s biographical memoir Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison. The series is directed by filmmaker Hansal Mehta and stars Karishma Tanna in the lead role.
Poster of the web series based on Jyotirmoy Dey’s murder, Scoop
- In his book Behind Bars in Byculla, he mentions that his father’s alcoholism destroyed his childhood and his family.
- He has a nose piercing and wears a Trishul-shaped nose ring.
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
