100 crore defamation suit filed by Shiv Sena legislator Ravindra Waikar, wife against former Member of Parliament from BJP

Shiv Sena legislator Ravindra Waikar and his wife Manisha Raikar have filed a civil defamation suit in Bombay High Court against former Member of Parliament (MP) from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Kirit Somaiya seeking over Rs 100 crores as damages..The Waikar couple has claimed that Somaiya has been constantly making ‘baseless’ allegations against them to indirectly target the leadership of Maharashtra for political gain as he is losing his presence within his political party.."Lack of attention has forced Somaiya to become an attention seeker through unlawful means at the cost of Waikar’s interest." the plea states..Somaiya is alleged to have made several 'defamatory' and 'baseless' allegations against the Waikar couple, which was carried by several print and electronic media platforms..Waikar has filed the present suit after Somaiya filed a ‘bogus’ police complaint. Now, Waikar apprehends that Somaiya, through lawful means, may approach the authorities and mislead them about the Waikars..Last month, Somaiya had accused Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Waikar of misusing their positions to purchase properties in Alibaug, which were then transferred to the names of their wives, Rashmi Thackeray and Manisha Waikar. Somaiya claimed that the Waikar couple had acquired a particular plot of land from late Anvay Naik, an interior designer, in 2014..Waikar claims that, amid the current controversy surrounding the suicide of Naik, Somaiya has cooked up stories in order to divert focus from the actual perpetrators..Waikar has claimed that:Somaiya’s statements are grossly defamatory and trying to portray an illusionary existence of several non-existing profitable transactions for commercial benefits;That the allegations, statements and imputations contained in a letter issued by Somaiya are false and untrue to the knowledge of the Somaiya; andThat statements have been spoken and written by the Somaiya maliciously.That these statements were made to get political mileage. .In particular, reference is made to Somaiya's allegations that Waikar and his wife purchased properties in Alibaug which was not disclosed in his election affidavit. The allegations have caused him "loss of reputation" and "mental agony", submits Waikar. .The Waikar couple claims that not a single allegation has been substantiated with documents and that incomplete documents are equivalent to not having any knowledge about the transactions at all..The intention of Somaiya is to instigate the masses and malign Waikar's reputation and goodwill in the eyes of the general public, it is contended. The plaintiffs add that this is evident from the underlying tone in the various statements issued in numerous press conferences held by Somaiya..Against this backdrop, the Waikar couple has contended that Somaiya is liable for making false allegations against them and has harmed their reputation and goodwill in public, for which he is liable to pay damages.