Nawab Malik replies to defamation suit of Sameer Wankhede's father; seeks quashing of plea

Filing a formal reply to the defamation suit of Sameer Wankhede's father Dnyandev, Nawab Malik urged the Bombay HC to dismiss this petition. Dnyandev Wankhede alleged that the NCP spokesperson started making allegations against the NCB Mumbai Zonal Director after the former's son-in-law Sameer Khan was arrested by the central agency in a drugs case. Besides seeking damages to the tune of Rs.1.25 crore, he requested the HC to order the deletion of the defamatory material and restrain Malik from making such comments. 

After hearing this matter on Monday, a single-judge bench of the Bombay High Court comprising Justice Madhav Jamdar directed the Maharashtra Minister to file a reply by November 9. Denied having made any defamatory statement, Malik questioned the maintainability of the plea citing that Dnyandev Wankhede cannot file a suit on behalf of his son, Yasmeen Wankhede and Kranti Redkar Wankhede without the court's permission. According to the NCP leader, the petitioner had failed to produce any proof contradicting the "documentary evidence" presented by him. 

For instance, he mentioned that neither the petitioner nor Sameer Wankhede had produced any evidence to disprove the birth certificate which indicates that they are Muslims. Malik also claimed that his "evidence" had helped the government machinery to take corrective steps against the NCB Mumbai Zonal Director. Referring to newspaper reports, he highlighted the ongoing vigilance inquiry against Sameer Wankhede and the fact that the SIT from the Operations Branch of the NCB had taken over 6 cases from its Mumbai Zonal unit. 

Nawab Malik's charges against Sameer Wankhede

Nawab Malik, whose son-in-law was jailed in a drugs case, alleged on October 25 that Sameer Wankhede corrected his father's name and used a fake caste certificate to become an Indian Revenue Service officer via the reserved category snatching away the rights of genuine Dalits. He stated that several Dalit organizations would formally challenge the validity of Wankhede's caste certificate and asserted that the latter faces a jail term of 2-7 years if found guilty. Clarifying that he harbours no ill-will against the NCB, he claimed that Wankhede registers "fake cases"  in order to extort money from people.

Moreover, he alleged that the NCB Mumbai Zonal Director is tapping phones via two private persons. The Maharashtra Minister also stated that he had received a letter sent by an unnamed official of the NCB who cited instances of 26 "fake cases" allegedly registered by Wankhede. It is pertinent to note that Dnyandev Wankhede has already filed a police complaint demanding Malik be booked under Section 3 (punishments for offences of atrocities) of the SC/ST Act, Sections 499 (defamation), 503 (criminal intimidation) and 508 of the IPC and Section 66E (punishment for violation of privacy) of the IT Act.