Union Shipping Minister G.K. Vasan, on Friday, said he would file a defamation suit against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for including his name on a list of corrupt politicians in the country.
“If he fails to take back his statement and issue an unconditional apology, I will be forced to seek legal remedy, including filing a defamation suit against him to protect my fair name and honour,” Mr. Vasan said in a statement.
The Minister said he was surprised and shocked to see the allegations of corruption made by Mr. Kejriwal against him and the Shipping Ministry. “With a clear conscience, I can challenge anybody to prove any corruption charge against me during my tenure as Central Minister. I have brought in many systemic improvements to bring transparency and accountability in the functioning of ports and the Shipping Ministry.”
Mr. Vasan said Mr. Kejriwal had included his name and the Ministry probably in connection with a public interest litigation petition filed by an NGO.
“I would like to mention that the issue on which the PIL was filed related to the period before I joined as Shipping Minister. Once the issue came to my notice, I took proactive steps to get market value fixed for the lands and also to make tender-cum-auction methodology mandatory for land leases,” he said.
