Sunanda Pushkar death case: Patiala House Court allows Shashi Tharoor to travel abroad, asks for Rs 2 lakh deposit

Delhi’s Patiala House court on Wednesday allowed Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, accused in the case of his wife Sunanda Pushkar’s death, to travel abroad. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal allowed Tharoor’s application seeking permission to travel to Canada for a few days. Tharoor is scheduled to leave for Canada on 10 August. [caption id=“attachment_4734231” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Shashi Tharoor and Sunanda Pushkar. AFP[/caption] While granting him permission to travel abroad, the court directed him to furnish a fixed deposit receipt of Rs 2 lakh before it, which shall be refunded after his return. “Tharoor has cooperated with the investigation. He had appeared before court on the first date in pursuance of the summons issued to him. There is nothing on record to presume that he may flee justice,” the court order said. The court had earlier granted exemption to Tharoor from personal appearance for a day after he said that he was unable to come to court since Parliament was in session. Earlier in July, the Patiala House court had granted bail to the Congress leader on conditions that he will not tamper with the evidence and shall not leave India without permission. Prior to this, the Delhi police had objected to Tharoor’s bail saying that he is an influential person and can hamper the investigation. The court had on 5 June summoned Tharoor, observing there was sufficient ground to proceed against him. Tharoor has been charged under sections 498A (husband or his relative subjecting a woman to cruelty) and 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), but has not been arrested in the case yet. Shashi Tharoor’s wife Sunanda Pushkar was found dead under mysterious circumstances in a five-star hotel in Delhi on 17 January, 2014. With inputs from PTI