Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday was discharged in the Sunanda Pushkar death case. Special judge Geetanjali Goel’s order was pronounced in presence of Tharoor, senior advocate Vikas Pahwa and additional public prosecutor Atul Shrivastava.
Pushkar who had big ties in the glam industry was found dead on the evening of January 17, 2014.
Sunanda's event management firm, Expressions hosted fashion shows and model shows for product launches. Rhea Pillai, Hemant Trivedi, and even Aishwarya Rai engaged in these events.
Sunanda thought she was a trendsetter, and that her shows would become a staple in the glamour industry later. Her networking skills, which helped her land major sponsors, began to garner her some attention in the industry.
Her death had shocked the nation and became a matter of discussion in political circles. Initially, Delhi police investigated the same as a murder, with an FIR registered under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), it charged Tharoor under Sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 498A (cruelty by husband).
Shrivastava had argued that before her death, Pushkar had sustained injuries on her body, and they were reflected in the post mortem report. He submitted 27 tablets of Alprax were found in her room, although it was not clear as to how many pills she had consumed.
Also Read: Delhi court discharges Shashi Tharoor in Sunanda Pushkar death case
Here’s the timeline of Sunanda’s death case against Shashi Tharoor.
- Jan 17, 2014- A day after her Twitter spat with Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar over the latter's alleged affair with Shashi Tharoor, Sunanda Pushkar was found dead in suite 345 of the Hotel Leela Palace in New Delhi, under unknown circumstances.
- Jan 19, 2014- According to doctors who conducted a postmortem at AIIMS claimed that it appears to be a case of "sudden, unnatural death." They noted more than a dozen injury marks on Sunanda's hands and an abrasion on her cheek, indicating "use of blunt force," as well as a "deep teeth bite" on the edge of her left palm.
- Jan 20, 2014- Pushkar's doctors in Kerala, who treated her days before she died stated Pushkar had not been diagnosed with any life-threatening ailment that could have caused death.
- Jan 21, 2014- Sunanda died of poisoning, according to the subdivisional magistrate (SDM), who was in charge of the inquest because the marriage was less than seven years old. Sunanda might have died in "only three ways, homicidal, suicidal, or accidental," according to the SDM's report, and police should investigate more to determine the cause of her death.
- Jan 23, 2014- The investigation was handed to the Delhi Police Crime Branch. Traces of two drugs – Alprazolam, an antidepressant, and Excedrin, a painkiller were discovered in her body on the same day. Just in two days, the case was handed back to Delhi Police on January 25.
- July 2, 2014- According to reports by a reputed Indian daily, Dr Sudhir Gupta, an AIIMS doctor who led the panel that conducted Pushkar's postmortem, said that he was forced to change the autopsy result.
- Jan 1, 2015- BS Bassi, the then-Delhi Police Commissioner, concluded that Pushkar's death was a murder, not suicide. The Delhi Police filed an FIR under Section 302 against unknown individuals.
- Jan 15, 2015- The AIIMS medical board advises the Delhi Police on the US FBI lab report on Pushkar's viscera samples to determine the cause of her death.
- Nov 2015- The Delhi Police approach journalist Nalini Singh for assistance as she was one of the last people to talk with Pushkar. According to reports, Pushkar had requested Singh's assistance in retrieving messages between Tharoor and Tarar.
- Feb 2016- Tharoor is questioned by a Delhi Police Special Investigation Team, claiming that Pushkar died of a drug overdose.
- March 2016- After arriving in Delhi, Tarar talks with a top officer and denies any involvement or knowledge of Pushkar's death.
- July 2017- Subramanian Swamy, a BJP leader, petitions the Delhi High Court for an SIT investigation into Sunanda Pushkar's death. Swamy's appeal, however, is dismissed by the High Court on October 26, 2017, citing his PIL as a textbook example of a "political interest litigation."
- Jan 2018- Swamy petitions the Supreme Court for an SIT investigation, alleging that the Delhi Police took a year to file an FIR in the case.
- Feb 2018- The Supreme Court requests a response from the Delhi Police on Swamy's petition.
- April 2018- After conducting "thorough professional and scientific investigations" into the case, Delhi Police says a draught final report has been issued.
- May 2018- Chargesheet filed and the case was transferred to the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, which is a special court that hears cases involving politicians.
- August 2019- Delhi Police ask city court to charge the Congress MP with abetment to suicide or, “in alternative" on murder charge in the case of his wife's death.
- July 2021- Delhi court postpones a decision on whether to put Congress politician Shashi Tharoor on trial in a case involving his wife's murder for nearly a month. During the arguments, Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa, representing Tharoor told the court that the SIT probe entirely vindicated the politician of all the accusations levelled against him, including 306 (abetment of suicide).
- August 2021- Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday was discharged in the Sunanda Pushkar death case by Special judge Geetanjali Goel.