BJP’s information technology cell chief and the co-in-charge of the party’s state unit in West Bengal, Amit Malviya is heading to initiate legal proceedings against Santanu Sinha, an RSS associate, over his derogatory social media post accusing Malviya of taking sexual favours.

Santanu Sinha has family links with BJP’s former national secretary Rahul Sinha.

Earlier, Malviya’s counsel served a legal notice to Santanu Sinha on 8 June asking the latter to tender a public apology and also remove the slanderous social media post within three days from the receipt of the legal notice, failing which legal proceedings, both civil and criminal, will be initiated against him.

Sources said that the three-day deadline will expire on Tuesday and appropriate legal actions will be initiated against Sinha if he fails to abide by the directions given in the legal notice served to him on 8 June.

Santanu Sinha’s social media post had been highlighted by the opposition parties, including Congress and Trinamul Congress, in a major way and both held press meetings on the issue.

The post was written on 7 May on Facebook.

TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghosh on Monday wrote on her social media post: “To all those celebrating the “swearing in” of @narendramodi, a message from India’s only woman chief minister @MamataOfficial . She switched off all her lights and sat in darkness during the entire so called “ceremony” for a “prime minister” who has resoundingly lost the mandate and has been rejected by the people: Almost lost in Varanasi, lost in Ayodhya, could not get a majority in spite of a campaign centred entirely on himself. Modi should be replaced . Let the @BJP4India elect a fresh leader.

On Sunday, allegations of sexual exploitation of women by Amit Malviya came to light after senior state BJP leader Rahul Sinha’s cousin Santanu Sinha, an ex-ABVP leader and currently chief of Hindu Samhati wrote in his post about Mr Malviya. He alleged that Malviya was conducting his political activities with the Bengal state leadership in lieu of ‘women’.

Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate held a press conference on the issue on Monday where she said BJP’s IT cell has become a den of anti-women people. She said the BJP-led NDA government has taken over the reins in Delhi and within a few hours such allegations have come to light. The person accusing Mr Malviya is none other than RSS leader. She even mentioned the incidents at BHU.