On February 22, at 10 am, the order passed by the Special Court at Bidhannagar to prosecute cases against MPs and MLAs ordered Shah to appear before the court.
In connection with a criminal defamation suit filed against him by Trinamool Congress Member of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been summoned by a West Bengal court.
The order passed by the Bidhan Nagar Special Court to prosecute cases against MPs and MLAs ordered Shah to appear before it at 10 a.m. on 22 February.
Whereas your presence is required for a charge of (Section) 500 of the Indian Penal Code to be addressed. You are expected to appear before the Special Judge (MP/MLA) court at Bidhannagar personally/by pleader.
Banerjee, who is the nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, lodged a defamation complaint at a rally organized by the BJP in Kolkata on August 11, 2018, objecting to a speech made by Shah.
As per his complaint, Shah allegedly made numerous false accusations against Banerjee during his speech, by making flimsy, barely veiled references to the Chief Minister’s Bhatija (nephew).
Banerjee clearly objected to the following comments (English translation): “Narada, Sharda, collusion in the Rose Valley Syndicate. Corruption by a nephew. Mamataji has carried out a number of corruptions.
“Residents of Bengali villages. Did the cash hit your village? Say loudly, yes. Has the money entered your village? Where has it gone? It was submitted by Modiji. Where did the crore of Rs 3,95,000 go? This was conferred upon the nephew and the syndicate.
The charges, claimed by the lawsuit, are devoid of any content and bereft of any substance of fact.
“The allegations are patently untrue and are a ploy by the accused to tarnish and damage the reputation of the complainant,” said the complainants.