NEW DELHI (TIP): Congress leader and lawmaker Shashi Tharoor was today granted anticipatory bail by a Delhi court in a case relating to his wife Sunanda Pushkar’s death almost four years ago in a luxury hotel here.

The Thiruvananthapuram MP, who has been summoned as an accused on July 7 in the case, had moved the court for anticipatory bail apprehending arrest. Pushkar was found dead in a suite of a luxury hotel in the city on the night of January 17, 2014. The couple was staying in the hotel as Tharoor’s official bungalow was being renovated then.

Observing that the prosecution’s apprehensions that Tharoor may flee offshore or influence witnesses were “without any basis”, Special Judge Arvind Kumar granted relief and asked him to furnish a personal bond and a surety of Rs 1 lakh each while imposing certain conditions.

In his plea for anticipatory bail, Tharoor had submitted that the chargesheet in the case was filed and the SIT had categorically stated that the probe was concluded and his custodial interrogation was not required.

The court had summoned him as an accused in the case on June 5, asking him to appear before it on July 7, observing there was sufficient ground to proceed against him.

Can’t leave country

A Delhi court asked Shashi Tharoor to furnish a personal bond and a surety of Rs 1 lakh each while imposing certain conditions, including that he would not tamper with the evidence or leave the country without the court’s prior approval.

Source: PTI