Mystery surrounding the death of Sunanda Pushkar Tharoor deepened on Saturday as doctors who conducted autopsy on the body said it was a case of “sudden, unnatural death”. Injury marks were found on the body of 52-year-old Pushkar, wife of Union Minister Shashi Tharoor.
“We have conducted an autopsy. It is a case of sudden, unnatural death. We have completed the whole procedure,” said Sudhir Gupta, Head of Forensic Medicine Department (AIIMS) who was the head of the three-member panel of doctors who conducted the post-mortem. Pushkar was found dead in luxury The leela Palace hotel in South Delhi on Friday night.
However, the exact cause of her death will be ascertained after further examination and the final report is likely to come after 48 hours, Dr Gupta said. He ruled out it can be a case of poisoning. Meanwhile, Pushkar’s caretaker told the Magistrate that she had not been taking food for the last five days but only coconut water. It was also stated that she had been taking sleeping pills (Alprax) and had also started smoking excessively.
Sources said that some external injury marks were found on her wrist, shoulder and knee but it is yet to be established whether they were fatal in nature.
Dr Sudhir Gupta said that the panel of doctors were analysing the injuries and had taken photographs of the body. “The viscera samples — including portions of her heart, lungs, liver, kidney, hair, portions of the skin that bore injury marks — have been preserved for further testing at the forensic laboratory in AIIMS. Some have also been sent to the Central Forensic Science laboratory. The panel will submit the final report to the Sub-division Magistrate by Monday,” Dr Gupta said.
Police are also expected to record the statement of Shashi Tharoor, who was admitted to AIIMS following complaint of chest pain and was discharged in the afternoon. Sunanda was reportedly suffering from stomach tuberculosis and lupus, an auto-immune disorder which can lead to rashes or marks. Doctors are also examining her medical history.
Pushkar and Tharoor had been at the centre of a raging controversy earlier this week when reports emerged that she was upset over messages exchanged between her husband and Mehr Tarar, a Pakistani journalist.