Indian minister Shashi Tharoor faces magistrate over wife's sudden death

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/19/indian-minister-shashi-tharoor-faces-magistrate-wife-death

Version 0 of 1.

Indian government minister Shashi Tharoor appeared on Sunday before a magistrate investigating the death of his wife days after she accused him of adultery.

Tharoor's wife, Sunanda Pushkar, was found dead in a hotel room in New Delhi on Friday after sending tweets that suggested her husband was having an affair with Pakistan-based journalist Mehr Tarar.

An autopsy found that 52-year-old Pushkar's death was sudden and unnatural and her body bore injury marks, although doctors said this did not mean the injuries had caused her death.

Tharoor, a former UN diplomat, called for a quick investigation into his wife's death, saying he hoped this would put an end to rumours about their personal lives.

In a letter to India's home minister, Sushilkumar Shinde, Tharoor wrote: "I have finally had a chance to catch up with media reports and am horrified to read the reckless speculation rampant there.

"I pledge my full and unstinting co-operation. Nothing short of truth will end the indignity to which my wife and I are being subjected."

Later on Sunday, Tharoor, 57, gave his testimony to subdivisional magistrate, Alok Sharma, who is leading the inquest into his wife's death.

There was no word on what he had told the magistrate and he drove away without making any comment to reporters.

The scandal has erupted just as the Congress party, led by Rahul Gandhi, is preparing to fight a tough election against a resurgent main opposition party as well as a new political group that promises clean and open politics.

Rivals have painted Congress as a party of power and patronage, engulfed in corruption scandals and unable to hold its leaders to account for their actions.

Tharoor's alleged marital problems have been extensively reported, prompting calls by the opposition for a fuller inquiry into the death of his wife.

A leader of the Bharatiya Janata party, Subramanian Swamy, said: "The circumstances of this case are such that we need to get to the bottom of this."

Five members of Tharoor's staff were questioned by the magistrate leading the inquest into Pushkar's death. Under Indian criminal law, a magistrate must conduct an inquiry if a woman has died within seven years of marriage. The Tharoors married in late 2010, the third marriage for both.

A Delhi police spokesman declined to comment on the possible lines of inquiry before a final postmortem report had been issued.