Summoned in Sunanda Pushkar death case, Shashi Tharoor calls probe malicious and vindictive campaign

NEW DELHI: Hours after a Delhi court summoned Shashi Tharoor as accused in the Sunanda Pushkar death case, the senior Congress leader bounced back, terming the charges 'preposterous and baseless.' 

Tweeting a page-long statement, the Congress lawmaker from Thiruvananthapuram said, “ I will continue to vigorously contest these charges and maintain my steadfast conviction that ultimately the truth will prevail through the judicial system that we are privileged to have in our country.”

He further requested the media to respect his and his family's right to privacy.

My statement on today's news. pic.twitter.com/5zWf4PR9ue — Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) June 5, 2018

Tharoor was asked to appear before the court on July 7.

While issuing the summon to the Congress leader, the court observed, “There exists sufficient grounds to proceed against Tharoor for commission of offences in the case.” This comes almost a week after the court reserved its order on whether to summon Tharoor as an accused in the case.

Here's a full copy of Tharoor's statement: 

I have taken notice of the developments in the case being heard by the Hon'ble Judge of the Patiala House Court in relation to the circumstances surrounding the untimely demise of my late wife, Mrs. Sunanda Pushkar Tharoor. As I understand, the court has issued summons against my name and I have been asked to appear before the court on Saturday, 7th July 2018. 

I would like to point out that, from the very start, I have fully cooperated with the investigating team and continue to maintain that due legal process must be followed in all aspects related to this case. 

I would like to reiterate my position that I find the charges preposterous and baseless, the product of a malicious and vindictive campaign against myself. I will continue to vigorously contest these charges and maintain my steadfast conviction that ultimately the truth will prevail through the judicial system that we are privileged to have in our country. 

In the meantime, I would like to request the media to respect my right to privacy as well as that of my family. Given that the matter is sub-judice, I will refrain from commenting on this issue further until such time as the next scheduled hearing of the case.