Madhya Pradesh: Land Grab Charge: CM Yadav’s Culture Advisor Slaps Rs 5 Crore Defamation Suit Against MP Congress Chief
AICC general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh Harish Chaudhary indicated that the matter has been drawn to the notice of the party high command: Reports
BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav’s culture advisor Sriram Tiwari has filed a defamation suit of Rs five crore against state Congress president Jitu Patwari for ‘falsely implicating’ him in land grab charges.
The issue relates to charges made by Mr. Patwari recently that government lands worth Rs 500 crore were given to the Veer Bharat Nyas, which he termed as a private trust linked to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), at a price of Rs one.
Mr. Tiwari who is secretary of the Veer Bhart Nyas has however clarified that Veer Bharat Nyas, established in 2012, is a trust functioning under state culture and its ex-officio chairman is the incumbent chief minister.
Speaking on his behalf, his counsel Harish Mehta said that his client sent a defamation notice to the Congress leader seeking a public apology from him within three days, failing which he would proceed with the defamation case against him.
He said that Mr. Patwari while addressing a press conference at New Delhi recently alleged that government lands worth Rs 500 crore were given to the ‘private trust’, Veer Bharat Nyas, at a price of Rs one, which is totally false.
He said that Veer Bharat Nyas is a part of the state culture department.
“Mr. Patwari has made false corruption charges against Mr. Tiwari, despite knowing the fact. This has tarnished the image of Mr. Tiwari”, Mr. Mehta said.
Incidentally, the issue has also become a bone of contention between Mr. Patwari and Congress veteran Digvijay Singh.
Mr. Singh promptly dismissed the charges made by Mr. Patwari, saying that the trust is a government body and its ex-officio chairman is the incumbent chief minister.
He said that Mr. Yadav is the current chairman of Veer Bharat Nyas as being the chief minister.
Former chief minister and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath was also the chairman of the body when he was chief minister in the state, he said.
Former chief minister Mr. Singh said that the false news was broken by a media outlet, leading Mr. Patwari to make allegations based on the story.
The issue was hotly debated in the political affairs committee (PAC) meeting of the Pradesh Congress Committee recently with several members fearing that contradictory statements by two senior party leaders on a vital issue may erode the party's credibility in public.
AICC general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh Harish Chaudhary indicated that the matter has been drawn to the notice of the party high command.