Sundanda Pushkar death case: Delhi High Court tells Arnab Goswami to respect Shashi Tharoor's right to silence

The Delhi High Court told TV journalist Arnab Goswami and his channel Republic TV to respect the right to silence of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and stop ‘misreporting’ on his wife Sunanda Pushkar’s death on Friday.

The Delhi High Court listening to a plea filed by Tharoor alleging that Arnab and Republic TV continued to engage in ‘defaming and maligning’ him despite an assurance given in the court earlier this year.

A bench headed by Justice Manmohan has issued an notice to the Goswami and his channel.

Taking note of this, the bench said, "You (Goswami and the channel) have to respect Tharoor's right to silence." Senior advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for Tharoor, submitted that the court must direct Goswami and the channel to not mention the expression "murder of Sunanda Pushkar", as it is yet to be established by a competent court that her death was "murder", to ensure the trial was not prejudiced.

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Appearing for Goswami and Republic TV, senior advocate Sandeep Sethi said that they have only placed the actual evidence and the police report while broadcasting the news.

"We have not called him a murderer in any of the news broadcasts on the channel," Sethi said.

Also Read: Shashi Tharoor files defamation suit against Goswami, Republic in HC

The judge, however, said orally that he had asked the counsel who had assured that named would not be taken.

"They will have to abide by that," the judge said. Advocate Sethi replied, "My client stands by what was assured by me."

The court was hearing an application moved by Tharoor in his pending Rs 2 crore defamation suit against Goswami and the channel for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news relating to the mysterious death of his wife.

Pushkar was found dead in a suite of a five-star hotel in south Delhi on the night of January 17, 2014. The matter is still under investigation.

(With PTI inputs)