Mumbai bank sues Nawab Malik for ₹1,000 crore

A defamation suit claiming damages worth ₹1,000 crore has been filed in the Bombay high court by Mumbai District Cooperative Bank against NCP leader and minister Nawab Malik and seven others for putting up defamatory banners and hoardings relating to an investigation by the economic offences wing of Mumbai Police

A defamation suit claiming damages worth ₹1,000 crore has been filed in the Bombay high court by Mumbai District Cooperative Bank against NCP leader and minister Nawab Malik and seven others for putting up defamatory banners and hoardings relating to an investigation by the economic offences wing of Mumbai Police. The suit has claimed that the content of the hoardings which were put up from July 1 to 4 at prominent locations in the city tarnished the reputation of the bank as it attributed alleged irregularities of ₹123 crore to the bank.

A defamation suit claiming damages worth ₹1,000 crore has been filed in the Bombay high court by Mumbai District Cooperative Bank against NCP leader and minister Nawab Malik. (HT PHOTO)

The suit has stated that though the police had concluded that the allegations of irregularities were based on mistaken facts and closed the case, the hoardings gave the opposite message and hence the bank was aggrieved. The HC has asked Malik and others to respond to the suit within six weeks.

According to the suit, hoardings had been put up at Ballard Pier and Ghatkopar (W) on July 1 showcasing a news article which stated that no investigation had been conducted on an alleged complaint of financial irregularities of the bank in 2015. The hoarding also had the photographs of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator and leader of opposition in the Maharashtra legislative Council, Pravin Darekar, who is also current chairman of Mumbai Bank, shown behind bars.

The suit has claimed that the hoardings had been up till July 4 during which the contents were seen by a large number of people and thus tarnished the image of the bank.

When the defamation suit came up for hearing before the single judge bench of justice Riyaz Chagla on Monday, advocate Akhilesh Chaubey informed the bench that an interim application had been filed in the suit seeking an injunction against Malik and others from tarnishing the image of the bank and its office bearers and also to issue a public apology for the putting up the hoardings.

The bank in its suit has stated that the hoardings were put up at the instance of Malik and others.

The defamation suit has sought directions to Malik to issue an unconditional apology to the bank, to retract the allegations against the bank made through the hoardings and to pay ₹1,000 crore as damages to the bank.