Tharoor, Goswami ready to depose in defamation suit

New Delhi: Shashi Tharoor and Arnab Goswami on Wednesday told the Delhi High Court they were willing to step into the witness box to depose in the defamation suit filed by the Congress leader against the journalist and his channel Republic TV.

The statements were made by their counsel before Justice Manmohan, who sought to know whether Tharoor, a senior Congress leader, and Goswami, anchor and managing director of Republic TV, were willing to come before the court to defend themselves.

"Will you (Tharoor) step into the witness box? Your case was that you do not want to speak," the judge asked the leader's counsel.

Tharoor's counsel Gaurav Gupta categorically stated that his client will turn up for deposition in the defamation case filed by him against Goswami and the news channel.

When the same question was posed to Goswami's counsel Malvika Trivedi, she submitted, "He will also come to depose".

The queries were posed by the court during framing of issues in the suit. Among the issues framed is whether Tharoor is entitled to compensation in a civil defamation suit filed by him against Goswami and his channel.

Tharoor, Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram, had filed the suit against Goswami and Republic TV, claiming damages and compensation of Rs two crore for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news related to the mysterious death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.