Chandrasekhar slaps defamation notice on Tharoor over TV byte

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar has sent a legal notice to Shashi Tharoor, accusing the Congress MP of making defamatory statements against him on a TV channel recently.

Chandrasekhar, who is facing off against Tharoor in the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency for the April 26 polls, has alleged that the Congress leader disseminated "patently false information" regarding bribing of key voters and influential figures such as parish priests, among others, by the BJP candidate.

The statements by Tharoor were made with an intent to harm Chandrasekhar's reputation and image. His remarks also disrespected the entire Christian community of Thiruvananthapuram and its leaders, as he had accused them of engaging in cash-for-votes activities, the BJP leader charged.

The Congress MP's statements were also in violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), he said.

The notice further claimed the statements were also targeted at injuring the BJP leader's election campaign and benefitting Tharoor in the elections.

It sought Tharoor to "immediately withdraw" all the allegations made against Chandrashekhar on April 6, tender an unconditional public apology to him on print and electronic media. He should "cease, refrain and desist from defaming, harassing, hampering the reputation" of the minister in the future.

Failure to comply with the stated conditions within 24 hours of receipt of the notice would lead to initiation of appropriate criminal and civil proceedings in a competent court of law, the BJP candidate warned.