Kerala BJP chief sends Rs 100-crore defamation notice to Malayalam news channel Reporter

BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has issued a defamation notice of Rs 100 crore against Malayalam news channel Reporter, alleging that the channel broadcast a series of false and defamatory reports linking him to a controversial land deal.

The notice has been sent to nine persons, including Reporter TV owner Anto Augustine, Consulting Editor Arun Kumar, Coordinating Editor Smrithi Paruthikad, News Coordinator Jimmy James, and Thiruvananthapuram Bureau Chief TV Prasad.

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The action followed the channel allegedly broadcasting false and defamatory news reports accusing Rajeev Chandrasekhar of a Rs 500-crore theft through illegal land deals and associating him with BPL Limited, an association he has denied.

According to the notice, sent through Mumbai-based law firm RHP Partners, the Kochi headquartered Reporter TV repeatedly aired fabricated news items connecting Chandrasekhar to a land transaction involving a company named BPL, despite the fact that he has no connection with the firm. It stated that the reports were aimed at maligning his reputation and position as BJP state president and demanded that the channel withdraw the false news, issue a public apology within seven days and Rs 100 crore in damages, failing which further legal action will be taken.

Earlier, the BPL Limited had clarified that the industrial land irregularity allegation raised by a section of the media against BJP state president was baseless and factually incorrect. The allegation now being raised is about an irregularity in land allotment, which was dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2003. BPL Limited stated in a press release that these allegations are untrue and have no legal validity.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar has no financial transactions or shareholding with BPL Limited. BPL CEO Shailesh Mudalar said that these allegations are politically motivated, malicious, and misleading. The company also informed that BPL had invested Rs 450 crore in the allotted land between 1996 and 2004.

Chandrasekhar had earlier stated that these controversies were being manufactured to divert attention from a scam related to the proposed visit of the Argentinian football team and Lionel Messi to Kerala. He also remarked that some criminals have entered the media sector and that he would confront them.

The BJP Kerala chief maintained that he would not tolerate attempts to spread misinformation or damage his personal and political reputation through fabricated media campaigns.