Will give all details sought by doctors panel in Sunanda case: Police

New Delhi, Oct 20: Delhi Police, probing the mysterious death of Sunanda Pushkar, wife of Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, on Monday said it will provide all details sought by a panel of AIIMS doctors so that it can give a "conclusive forensic" report to the investigators.

In its 12-page "Subsequent Medical Board Opinion", submitted to police on September 30, the panel of three AIIMS doctors had maintained that Sunanda died of poisoning but had reserved comment on giving specific details.

The medical board had said that the investigators did not provide various details of the case including photographs of the hotel room where Sunanda was found dead and other circumstantial evidence which would have helped them in reaching on specific conclusion about exact cause of death.

"Inquest proceedings are on. The doctors had sought few clarifications from us. We are in the process of gathering them which will help the doctors reach a conclusion," said Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi.

Asked whether Delhi Police will constitute a Special Investigative Team in the connection, he dismissed the possibility. "When we would get a conclusive forensic opinion in the case, we would be able to reach a conclusion after studying both the forensic report and the facts available to us and an appropriate action will be taken," he said.

"Very competent police officers are investigating and supervising the case. We are taking competent action in this case and there is no such need (to constitute an SIT)," he said.

The panel of doctors had said that the medical board had again concluded like it did in its first report that Sunanda's death was caused by poisoning and that her brain, kidney, lungs and liver were functioning normally before she died.

The new report by the three-member panel of doctors, who had conducted the autopsy on her, was prepared on the basis of the findings of the Centre Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) which had examined Sunanda's viscera.

The viscera report of CFSL in March had hinted at drug poisoning but police considered it as inconclusive. Police then asked AIIMS to re-examine the report and give its findings. Sunanda was found dead in a 5-star hotel in South Delhi on the night of January 17.

The probe into the case was handed over to the Crime Branch on January 23. However, the case was transferred back to the South District police two days later on January 25.

PTI