Two days after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Member of Parliament (MP) Kirit Somaiya had alleged irregularities in the housing projects undertaken by Shiv Sena legislator Pratap Sarnaik, the latter has issued a notice to Somaiya on Friday.
The notice has stated that Somaiya must either prove the allegations or apologise before the media in 15 days, failing which Sarnaik will file a ₹100-crore defamation suit against the former MP. The notice has also stated that the allegations by Somaiya are “childish”, made with an intention to revive his political career.
On Wednesday, Somaiya in a press conference had claimed that the construction at Thane’s Vihang Garden by Sarnaik’s Vihang Group is illegal. He had also alleged that the building constructed by the group does not have permissions to increase its floors from nine to 13 and that the Thane Municipal Corporation has given orders to demolish the structure.
Sarnaik’s lawyer advocate Raghunath Kulkarni said, “The BJP leader has given an extremely wrong statement to the media against my client without any proof. These statements have maligned the political reputation of my client.”
Replying to Somaiya’s allegations, Sarnaik had said, “The issue pertaining to the structure was resolved several years ago. When the then commissioner RA Rajeev had sent us a notice over the structure, we had explained that we have constructed a civic school in exchange of the transferable development rights (TDR). The notice was then taken back.”
{{/usCountry}}Replying to Somaiya’s allegations, Sarnaik had said, “The issue pertaining to the structure was resolved several years ago. When the then commissioner RA Rajeev had sent us a notice over the structure, we had explained that we have constructed a civic school in exchange of the transferable development rights (TDR). The notice was then taken back.”
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Somaiya has given a written complaint to the Vartak Nagar police requesting them to probe Sarnaik’s projects and file a case against him for cheating the residents of Vihang Garden. “Sarnaik has only issued a defamation notice. He doesn’t have the guts to file a defamation suit against me. I have submitted one letter to TMC about his illegal construction and also given a complaint to the police,” said Somaiya.
The police said it will probe into Somaiya’s allegations.