BJP rejects CM Omar’s MLA poaching charge, issues Rs 100-cr defamation notice

A fresh political confrontation flared up in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday as the BJP slapped a legal notice on Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, accusing him of making “false and defamatory” allegations that the party attempted to lure National Conference (NC) legislators with cash and ministerial berths to topple his government.

Calling the allegations “false, baseless and defamatory”, the BJP demanded a written retraction, an unconditional public apology within seven days, and warned of civil and criminal proceedings if the demands are not met.

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The chief minister, while addressing NC workers in Srinagar, alleged that the BJP is trying to bring down his government by engineering a split in his party. He also claimed that an NC MLA from Jammu told him that he was offered Rs 20-30 crore and a ministerial berth to switch sides to the saffron camp.

The notice has been issued through advocate Parimoksh Seth on the instructions of BJP J&K president and Rajya Sabha MP Sat Paul Sharma. It contends that the chief minister’s statements have caused serious damage to the reputation and public standing of the BJP and its office-bearers. A BJP spokesperson informed that the party has sent the notice to the chief minister.

The legal notice states that the allegations amount to defamation under both civil and criminal law and calls upon the chief minister to withdraw his charges in writing. “Issue an unconditional public apology within seven days of receiving the notice. Refrain from publishing or circulating any further defamatory material concerning the BJP. Immediately cease and desist from making or repeating any such statements,” it said.

The saffron party warned that if the demands are not complied with within the stipulated period, it will initiate appropriate civil and criminal proceedings before a competent court. These would include a defamation suit seeking damages of Rs 100 crore, apart from other legal remedies available under the law.

According to the three-page notice, Omar Abdullah alleged that BJP functionaries had approached certain National Conference MLAs from the Jammu region with offers of Rs 20-30 crore, ministerial berths and restoration of statehood in an attempt to persuade them to switch allegiance to the BJP. It refers to the chief minister’s allegation that a senior BJP office-bearer, who is also a lawyer practising in the Supreme Court, allegedly played a role in offering the inducements.

Rejecting the allegations, the BJP has described them as “entirely untrue, malicious and without any factual basis”. The notice states that the allegations were deliberately made to tarnish the party’s image and have been widely circulated, thereby causing substantial reputational harm.