'Prove corruption charges or face defamation': Narayanasamy to Amit Shah
Amit Shah, while addressing a rally in poll-bound Puducherry, accused Narayanasamy of corruption and claimed Gandhi family also received money from the former chief minister
Former Puducherry chief minister V Narayanasamy on Monday challenged Union home minister Amit Shah to prove the allegations of corruption he made against him at a rally. Narayanasamy also threatened to file defamation case against Shah.
"Home minister Amit Shah said that PM sent ₹15,000 crore to Puducherry and Narayanasamy took a cut and gave part of the money to Gandhi family. It's a very serious allegation against me. I challenge him to prove it," the Congress leader was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"If he doesn't prove, he has to apologise to the nation and people of Puducherry. If he doesn't prove, I will file a criminal defamation suit against him for giving a false statement to damage my image and that of Gandhi family," Narayanasamy added.
Watch: ' ₹15,000 crore cut-money to Gandhis', Amit Shah's 4-point attack
Shah, while addressing a rally in poll-bound Puducherry, accused Narayanasamy of corruption and claimed Gandhi family also received money from the former chief minister.
He also talked about the various development projects launched by the Narendra Modi government at the Centre and said they will benefit the people of the union territory. Shah's special focus was on the fishermen community.
He said that the Centre announced ₹20,000 crore in the budget to improve the fisheries infrastructure in the country. "Puducherry will reap the maximum benefit from this scheme," Shah added.
Narayanasamy resigned as chief minister on February 22, ahead of the floor test ordered by the Lieutenant Governor. He also hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the chaotic episode in the union territory and alleged that Shah was responsible for the toppling of the government.
On February 23, President Ram Nath Kovind then imposed President's Rule on the union territory after Narayanasamy's resignation, a notification from union home ministry said.
Polling for 30 assembly seats in Puducherry will be held on April 6, according to the scheduled announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI).