Amit Malviya Sexual Abuse Row: 'Statement Misinterpreted', Says Kolkata Lawyer; Terms It A 'Caution Against Honey Trap'

Within days since levelling an exlosive sexual exploitation allegation against BJP's IT Cell head Amit Malviya, Kolkata-based lawyer Santanu Sinha, on Tuesday claimed that his statements were 'misinterpreted'. In connection with the same incident, Sinha was also served a legal notice for making 'false and defamatory allegations' against Malviya and the party's Bengal unit.

Responding to the legal notice, Sinha further claimed that his social media post alleging sexual exploitation of women was just a caution against the BJP leader being honey-trapped and was not at all aimed at tarnishing Malviya's public image.

Notice to Santanu Sinha: What did Amit Malviya say?

BJP IT department head Amit Malviya has sent a legal notice to Sinha for making "false and defamatory allegations" against him and demanded an apology for it.

In the legal notice, Malviya's lawyer said Sinha, in a post on Facebook, made "some false and defamatory allegations" with an intention to harm his client's reputation. Furthermore, Malviya reportedly sought the removal of RSS member Santanu Sinha for "false, and derogatory" post from the social media.

"The nature of allegations are extremely offensive in as much as, they falsely allege sexual misconduct purportedly committed by my client. The same is fatally injurious to the dignity and reputation of my client who, by virtue of his professional profile, is a public figure," the notice read.

Amit Malviya Sexual Offence Row: What did the Kolkata lawyer say?

Clarifying his statement while responding to the legal notice, Kolkata-based lawyer and RSS worker Santanu Sinha said in a Facebook post, "If my post hurts Mr Malviya and/or undermines my party for such misinterpretation and edited version, I do express my heartfelt sorrow for the same. Since I have not written anything untoward in my post, with the mission to malign, I am not withdrawing the post, the bone of contention.”

Refusing to withdraw the post saying he hadn't written anything "untoward", Sinha wrote, "I, a Sangha Swayam Sevak, former State Secretary of ABVP and contestant in the State Assembly election and in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation election, do not want the Bharatiya Janata Party and its office bearers get undermined in any manner by misinterpretation of my post."

“I want to give a clear message that the post was not aimed to malign Malviya but as caution not to get entangled in a honey trap, which was first brought to light by Tathagata Roy, ex-president of the State unit and former governor of Tripura,” Santanu Sinha said in a post on Facebook on Tuesday.

"No corner in the post there is any whisper about sexual exploitation of women by Amit Malviya. Rather I have there expressed my fear that Malviya will be drawn to a honey trap by the unscrupulous leaders of the party to remain clung to their post despite such debacle in the recently held election," he added.