KOLKATA: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari on January 16 filed a defamation suit against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over what he described as “vile and imaginary allegations” linking him to the alleged coal scam.
Suvendu Adhikari, who is Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal assembly, said in a post on X that he has sought Rs 100 crore as damages over the allegations. He filed the defamation case in an Alipore court.
“Smt Mamata Banerjee, I honour my commitments while you obfuscate issues and people. Your deceptive silence to the defamation notice pertaining to your vile imaginary allegations of my involvement in some alleged coal scam will not help you salvage the situation,” he said.
“I kept my word of dragging you to Court for your deceitful misadventures and filed the suit against you today. Please get in touch with your learned Advocates early or else you will have to soon pay Rs.100 crores as damages to me, which in turn I will be donating to Charity,” he added.
Suvendu Adhikari said earlier this week that he would take legal action against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, saying that the time given to her to respond to a defamation notice has expired.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Adhikari said the Chief Minister’s failure to reply has exposed the “imaginary” nature of her allegations linking him to an alleged coal scam.
“Mamata Banerjee seems to be at wits end. The time given to Mamata Banerjee vide the Defamation Notice on my behalf has now expired and being in a fix has prevented her from replying. The Chief Minister by her conduct has made it clear that her imaginary allegations pertaining to me being involved in a coal scam was a product of her insalubrious mindset. Get ready to face legal consequences in the Court. Mamata Banerjee, now I will see you in Court,” Adhikari said in his post.
Adhikari had on Friday last sent a legal notice to the Chief Minister, demanding that she produce evidence within 72 hours to substantiate her claims that he was involved in a coal smuggling case. He had warned that failure to do so would compel him to initiate appropriate civil and criminal defamation proceedings.
In an earlier post on X, Adhikari said the allegations were made in a “desperate attempt to divert attention” from an ongoing Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation. He described the remarks as defamatory, politically motivated, and damaging to public discourse.
“These reckless statements, laced with personal insults, were made publicly without any shred of evidence. Such unsubstantiated claims not only tarnished my reputation but also undermine the dignity of public discourse,” he had said. (With inputs from ANI)
