(Image source from: Indiatimes.com)

Congress leader, Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday has been summoned by Delhi court as an accused in the case of death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

Directing him to appear before the court on July 7, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal said, "There are sufficient material at this stage to proceed against Tharoor. I have gone through and perused the charge sheet and documents filed along with it. Upon the police report, I take cognizance of the charges of abetment of suicide of the late Sunanda Pushkar and committing cruelty upon her by Shashi Tharoor.”

The Delhi court reserved the order on May 28 on taking cognizance of the charges.

Additional public prosecutor Atul Shrivastava argued that there was adequate material on record to manifest the charges against Mr. Tharoor of subjecting Pushkar to inhuman treatment and thereby abetting her suicide.

Mr. Tharoor was charged under Indian Penal Code sections 498 A (husband or his relative subjecting a woman to cruelty) and 306 (abetment of suicide).

The prosecutor informed the court that Pushkar had in an email to Mr. Tharoor expressing her wish to die, "I do not care about the tests. I have no will to live, all I pray for is death."

Mr. Shrivastava read out the from the charge sheet, in support of the charges against Mr. Tharoor, urging the tribunal to take cognizance of the investigation report and summon him as an accused.

The post mortem report stated that Pushkar had injuries on the body. Mr. Shrivastava said that cause of death was due to poisoning, merely adding that the matter was under investigation.

By Sowmya Sangam