Meghalaya: Legal notice issued to former CM over 'drug kingpin' comment

Meghalaya's Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Sangma has been served a legal notice by the chairman of 2B's Group of Companies for allegedly making false and malicious statements and incorrectly labelling Henry Lalremsanga, the head of 2B's Group of Companies as 'Drug Kingpin'.

The legal notice serves to address the unfounded accusations and character attacks made against Mr. Lalremsanga during a State Assembly session and subsequent media talks. These damaging allegations have been widely circulated, causing considerable harm to Mr. Lalremsanga’s personal and professional reputation.

"Lalremsanga was wrongfully arrested in 2013 in relation to a seizure of medical supplies, despite holding a valid license for such supplies. He was discharged by the Special Court, ND & PS Act, Patiala House Court, New Delhi in 2018, citing a lack of evidence of any offence committed" mentioned the notice to Sangma.

The recent defamatory statements, void of factual basis, have caused significant distress to Mr. Lalremsanga, his family, and the businesses he oversees. These statements have also indirectly tarnished the image of the Mizo community.

Legal counsel for Mr. Lalremsanga contends that the ill-conceived remarks are not only detrimental but are made with deliberate intentions to gain political mileage, thereby knowingly causing harm to his reputation. It was further stressed that these baseless allegations have resulted in irreversible damages, impacting longstanding business relationships and causing extreme mental and emotional distress to Mr. Lalremsanga and his family.

The legal notice served by the 2B's Group of Companies demands an unconditional apology from Mukul Sangma in addition to retraction of the statements made against the company within 7 days of the receipt of the notice. The notice thus served also demands Rs 20 crore in damages as compensation for injury to Lalremsanga's reputation.

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