Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT cell chief Amit Malviya has filed a defamation suit of Rs 10 crore against a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) who accused him of sexually exploiting women.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is the parent organisation of the BJP.
Malviya’s counsel sent a legal notice to the man, Santanu Sinha, on Saturday, saying: “The nature of allegations is extremely offensive in as much as they falsely allege sexual misconduct purportedly committed by my client. The same is fatally injurious to the dignity and reputation of my client who, by virtue of his professional profile, is a public figure.”
Malviya also sought an “unconditional apology” from Sinha and asked him to remove his Facebook post within three days from the date of the notice, which ends tomorrow.
The accusations were brought up by Congress leader Supriya Shrinate at a press briefing on Monday.
“An RSS member, Santanu Sinha, related to BJP leader Rahul Sinha, has said that the BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya indulged in nefarious activities,” Shrinate said. “He indulged in the sexual exploitation of women. Not just in 5-star hotels but in BJP offices in West Bengal.”
“The reality is less than 24 hours after PM Modi was sworn in, serious charges of sexual exploitation have been levelled against a very prominent office bearer of the BJP, the head of its IT cell,” Shrinate added.
Congress has asked the BJP to remove Malviya from his post immediately.