Indian MP's Wife Dead Allegedly Over Illicit Affairs

The wife of a top Indian politician has been found dead after she allegedly sent a string of furious tweets, accusing a journalist of having an affair with her husband.

Sunanda Tharoor's body was discovered in the bedroom of a five-star hotel in Delhi.

It came after a series of messages were sent from her account to Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar, accusing her of "stalking" her husband Shashi Tharoor, the minister for human resource development.

One message claimed Ms Tarar was "obsessed" with him and had sent a number of Blackberry and email messages last year.

In a joint statement, Mr Tharoor and his wife said they were "happily married" and claimed the "unauthorised" tweets, which have not been deleted, were "not intended for publication".

However, Mrs Tharoor allegedly spoke to two Indian newspapers, confirming she had written the messages.

"Our accounts have not been hacked and I have been sending out these tweets,"she told the Economic Times, adding to the Indian Express that she stood by the messages.

According to police sources, her body was found hours later by hotel staff who knocked on the door of her room but got no response.

Officials for her husband said he was staying there with his wife while their home was being redecorated.

There were no visible injuries of a struggle and nothing to suggest poisoning, according to special commissioner Deepak Mishra.

Sky's India producer Neville Lazarus, in Delhi, said: "Police have sealed the entire third floor of the hotel and have called in forensic experts to examine the scene.

"Photographs have been taken along with evidence including fingerprints from the rooms, bed and door handles.

"Officers have asked for CCTV footage and are also examining video from the hotel's control room."

Ms Tarar said she was "absolutely shocked" after learning of Ms Tharoor's death.

"This is too awful for words," she tweeted. "So tragic. I don't know what to say. Rest in peace, Sunanda."

There has been no comment from Mr Tharoor, the MP for Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala state and a former UN diplomat.