Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari to Move Court Against Mamata Banerjee for Defamation

West Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari has announced his intention to initiate legal proceedings against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee following her failure to respond to a defamation notice within the stipulated timeframe. In a post on X on Wednesday, Adhikari declared that the 72-hour deadline for Banerjee to provide evidence substantiating her allegations of his involvement in a coal smuggling scam had lapsed, exposing what he termed as the "imaginary" and baseless nature of her claims.

The legal notice, issued through advocate Suryaneel Das last Friday, demanded that the Chief Minister produce concrete proof within three days to back her public assertions linking Adhikari to the alleged coal scam and claiming that illicit funds were routed to Union Home Minister Amit Shah through him. Adhikari described Banerjee's statements as reckless, politically motivated, and personally defamatory, asserting that they were made without any supporting evidence and were intended to damage his reputation as a public representative.

The controversy originated from remarks made by Mamata Banerjee during a public address amid protests surrounding an Enforcement Directorate raid at the Kolkata office of I-PAC. In her speech, the Chief Minister accused both Adhikari and Amit Shah of involvement in the coal smuggling racket, prompting Adhikari to characterise the allegations as a desperate diversionary tactic to deflect attention from the ongoing ED investigation.

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Adhikari's earlier statements on X condemned the Chief Minister's remarks as unsubstantiated and harmful to the integrity of public discourse, highlighting their personal and insulting tone. The notice explicitly objected to what it described as distasteful and maligning comments, calling upon Banerjee to furnish all relevant documents and materials to validate her accusations or face appropriate civil and criminal defamation proceedings.

With the response period now expired and no reply forthcoming from the Chief Minister, Adhikari has escalated the matter by warning of imminent court action. He stated that Banerjee's silence and conduct have confirmed the fabricated nature of her allegations, stemming from what he called an "insalubrious mindset," and reiterated his resolve to pursue legal consequences to defend his honour and counter the politically driven narrative.

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