Shashi Tharoor went to my school in Mumbai; an old school tie can be a special bond. I do not choose to defend Mr Tharoor or give him a clean chit. Nor will I pronounce him guilty in the ‘court’ of a television studio. What I do call for is a swift and transparent investigation into the Sunanda Tharoor case. Sunanda died on January 17,2014. Now, almost a year later the Delhi police has filed an FIR in the case for murder under section 302 against ‘unknown persons’. The medical board now tells us that Sunanda was poisoned and died an ‘unnatural death’. In the past 12 months, various theories have been floated: we were told that Sunanda could have died of a drug overdose, then that she committed suicide, that she might have been murdered, possibly strangled, now poisoned. None of the theories have yet been proven, yet that has not stopped the endless speculation. Or voyeuristic delight into the lives of the Tharoors.
We live in the age of the tabloid media, so some of the coverage should occasion no surprise. Remember the Aarushi case which also was quickly converted into a soap opera? Then, it was the idea that the parents might have killed their young daughter that led to feverish debate. Now, we have a beautiful woman, her highly successful husband: Sunanda and Shashi were once the toast of Delhi’s cocktail circuit; now, their lives are being dissected by the very people who once feted them. That is typical of a city which thrives on power and gossip.
But for a moment forget the Lutyens elite and their hypocritical ways. What of the premier police force in the land? Last night, on television I posed four questions: a) is the police being over-cautious because it is a high profile case? B) Why did it take so long to file an FIR? C) Why is the police filing a murder charge but not ruling out the possibility of suicide? D) has the regime change at the centre had anything to do with a case involving a former union minister? I should have added a fifth: e) what does it say about our forensic science capabilities that we have had conflicting reports in the case and now the viscera may have to be sent abroad because our laboratories aren’t good enough for testing? Clearly, our criminal justice system has been found wanting yet again in a major case. And if we can’t get to the bottom of this case despite the media spotlight, think of those hundreds of lesser known cases that never get solved.
My last word is for us in the media, especially television. Yes, we are driven by a TRP culture and see a murder case involving the rich and famous as ideal fodder. Yes, this case must be thoroughly investigated. But are we conducting a media trial based on sensationalising facts? Last night, I carried a video of the dead body with marks on it. We saw it as evidentiary value and, therefore, relevant to the case. On hindsight, in showing close ups of the body, we erred: could we not have just blurred the body pictures? I plead guilty. Sunanda deserves justice. She also deserves dignity, in death as in life.
