Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee on Monday sent a defamation notice to Bharatiya Janata Party leader Mukul Roy for levelling corruption allegations against him in a rally.
Roy, who joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on November 3, on Friday had alleged that Banerjee, the nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, owned Biswa Bangla, a brand promoted by the state government. He had also said that the All India Trinamool Youth Congress national president owned the party’s mouthpiece Jago Bangla.
“Biswa Bangla, sponsor of the recent Under-17 FIFA World Cup, is owned by Abhishek Banerjee,” Roy had alleged at his first public rally in Kolkata since he joined the BJP. “It is not a government entity. All campaign material, party literature, monograms, etc of Trinamool Congress are printed by a company owned by Abhishek Banerjee,”
In the defamation notice, Banerjee accused Roy of deliberately levying “baseless allegations” against him. It further said that the TMC MP did not own or was a shareholder of any company by the name Biswa Bangla or Jago Bangla.
“Your statements at the public rally were solely designed to please your new political masters at our client’s expense,” reads the notice. “You have deliberately targeted our client and your false and defamatory statements and nothing more than an attempt to malign and tarnish our client’s reputation.”
Banerjee has demanded an unconditional apology within 48 hours. He warned Roy of criminal and civil action if he failed to apologise. “The allegations made by you have caused unrest and anxiety amongst our client’s friends, well-wishers and most importantly the public at large, which is beyond repair despite any remedial measures taken by you,” it added.
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