Calcutta HC stays defamation suit by Bengal minister against LoP Adhikari

Kolkata, June 25 The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday put an interim stay on the defamation suit filed against the Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari by the state Public Health Engineering Minister Pulak Roy.

Pulak Roy filed a defamation case at a district court in Uluberia in Kolkata-adjacent Howrah district.

Calcutta High Court's Bench of Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya, while imposing an interim stay on the matter, also ruled that the hearing or the trial process on the matter at the district court could not be conducted till further instructions from the High Court.

Quite some time back, Adhikari accused Roy and his department of irregularities in the purchase of drinking water ferrules under the centrally-sponsored Jal Jeevan Mission, a project aiming to provide safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections by 2024 to all households in rural India.

Adhikari alleged that the ferrules were procured at Rs 570 a piece, which is over double the existing market price of Rs 218 and claimed that there had been irregularities to the tune of Rs 500 crore in the Rs 1,086 crore project.

Roy, a Trinamool Congress legislator from Uluberia Dakshin Assembly constituency, filed the defamation suit at the sub-division court at Uluberia against Adhikari, challenging the allegations made by him.

In his defamation suit, Roy accused Adhikari of making allegations against him and his department just on the basis of verbal figures and without any supportive evidence in the matter.

Adhikari, on his part, approached the Calcutta High Court, challenged the defamation suit at the district court, and also sought a stay on it. In his petition, the counsel of the LoP claimed that his client made these allegations on the basis of specific documents and figures available in the matter.

After sustained hearings in the matter for days, finally the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday put an interim stay on the proceedings in the trial process and hearings at the district court till further order.

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