Pilot has termed the allegations “baseless and vexatious”
Former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot has served a legal notice to Congress MLA Girraj Singh and sought a written apology after the latter alleged that Pilot had offered him crores of rupees to switch over to the BJP.
Addressing a press conference on July 20, Singh, MLA from Bari in Dholpur, had claimed that he was offered Rs 35 crore by Pilot to switch to BJP. Hours later, Pilot had issued a statement — his first written statement since the crisis began — saying, “I am saddened but not surprised to be at the receiving end of such baseless and vexatious allegations being leveled against me. This is done solely to malign me and to stifle the legitimate concerns that I had raised against the party leadership of the state, as a member and MLA of INC.”
Pilot had said, “I will be taking appropriate and strictest possible legal action against the MLA who was made to make these accusations. I am sure more such concocted allegations will be thrown at me to cause aspersions on my public image. But I shall be unfettered and remain firm in my beliefs and convictions.”
Former Rajasthan Deputy CM @SachinPilot serves a legal notice to Congress MLA Girraj Singh who had claimed Pilot offered him Rs 35 crores.
Pilot has sought Re 1 and a written apology from the MLA.@IndianExpress#RajasthanPolitics #Rajasthan #GehlotVsPilot pic.twitter.com/qa3VRM0U0S
— Hamza Khan (@Hamzwa) July 22, 2020
The notice, sent through Supreme Court lawyer S Hariharan, states that Pilot was “disturbed” to know the allegations levelled against him “with sole intention of tarnishing his image and to obtain political mileage and to accrue undue advantage to his political opponents”.
Singh told The Indian Express that he will comment on the notice once he receives it.
Pilot has sought a written apology from Singh before the media and a token amount of Re 1 “for issuing a false and frivolous allegation” within seven days of the receipt of notice. The lawyer has also said that failing to do so may invite “appropriate proceedings criminal and civil litigation” for defamation.
Hariharan said that Singh alleged that he was offered money in December 2019, so “it is surprising that you had remained silent for a period of seven months and suddenly raked up the bunch of lies solely with a purpose to malign the impeccable reputation of my client”.
He said that Pilot has never spoken to Singh in this regard. Reminding Singh that he had switched over from the BSP to Congress, Hariharan said that it was “you, who had switched parties in the past for the reasons best known to you”.