'Cops Tried to Pressure Domestic Help to Say That He and I Killed Sunanda,' Shashi Tharoor Wrote to Delhi Police Chief BS Bassi

New Delhi: In November last year, Congress lawmaker Shashi Tharoor wrote a letter to Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi, alleging that while questioning his domestic help, police officers "physically assaulted" him to try and force him into framing Mr Tharoor in the death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.  (Read Shashi Tharoor's Letter to Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi)

"The officer used the traumatic physical assault to try and intimidate Narayan into confessing that he and I murdered my wife," wrote Mr Tharoor in the letter, which NDTV has now accessed.

He wrote the letter on November 12 last year seeking to put on record his conversation with Mr Bassi three days before, noting, "As you graciously agreed, such conduct is completely unacceptable and illegal. It also amounts to the use of physical coercion in the attempt to frame an innocent man. I would request you to take immediate and appropriate action against such unlawful misconduct of the officer concerned."

"My staff and I have always made myself available for any kind of inquiry and investigation but the recent behaviour of the officer towards my staff is matter of serious concern to a law-abiding citizen," Mr Tharoor also wrote.

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When asked about the letter, Mr Bassi would only say, "We will share anything that is relevant when time comes." (Also Read -  Opinion: I Knew Sunanda. But I Can't Say If She Killed Herself)

On Monday, the Delhi Police said it had registered a case of murder based on a new report from doctors at  Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) who handled the post-mortem for Ms Pushkar after she was found dead at a five-star hotel in the capital in January last year. ('Sunanda Pushkar Report Does Not Say Homicidal': AIIMS Forensic Chief)

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Mr Tharoor said on Tuesday that he is "stunned" at a murder case being registered in his wife's death. "Although we never thought of any foul play in the death of my wife, we all want that a comprehensive investigation be conducted and that the unvarnished truth should come out," he said, assuring the police of his "full cooperation." (Read Full Statement Here)