‘Mard ki aulaad maanunga…’: Why BJP MP Nishikant Dubey filed a defamation case against former finance minister Subhash Garg. Today’s news
Bharatiya Janata Party (MP) Nishikant Dubey on Monday said he has filed a defamation case against former finance minister Subhash Garg. Dubey criticized Garg for claiming that Dubey had visited his office in 2018.
“I have decided to correct this misbehavior of Subhash Garg, former finance minister. I have filed a criminal complaint against him for defamation because he mentioned that he met me in his office,” Dubey said in a post on X.
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He added, “Subhashi, for your information, since I became an MP in 2009, I have not visited the Government of India office because in the protocol of the Government of India, Secretary is under MP.”
Dubey challenged Subhash Garg and said, “…have I ever written any letter regarding transfer from 2009 till today? Not only you, but if any of your friends also give me information regarding any of my letters or any dealings in the office, I will consider you a son of a man.”
“For the man who destroyed the country’s economy, Subash, the only way is jail,” he added.
Nishikant Dubey vs Subhash Garg over letter
Nishikant Dubey’s lawsuit follows a public row sparked by Subhash Garg, who had earlier disputed the official Q1 GDP growth figures.
Responding to Garga’s criticism, Dubey revived the old conflict by sharing a letter he had originally sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2018.
At the time, Garg was serving as Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Affairs – a post he held before he was promoted to Finance Minister in March 2019.
In a 2018 letter, Dubey urged Prime Minister Modi to review Garg’s macroeconomic framework. He also took to X to recall his criticism of Gargo.
“I wrote back in 2018 that the former finance minister is ignorant. One does not grow wise from the height of stupidity,” Dubey said in a post in Hindi.
Read also | Subhash Garg hints at raising $10 billion in first foreign bond sale
Later in the podcast, Garg said the letter was dated March 2018 and that the transfer took place in 2019. He accused Dubey of “blackmail”.
Garg claimed that Dubey “came to him in the office once” to tell me to ask the LIC chairman to do his job. “So I asked him, ‘Why are you telling me this? LIC is not under my control’.”
Garg claimed that the “work” Dubey asked him to do was related to transfers and contracts. He said he refused to do his job. “Nobody takes his warning seriously,” he added later.
It was this comment by Garg that prompted Dubey to file a defamation case against him.
Dubey rejects Garg’s claim
Dubey dismissed any suggestion that he had visited Garg’s office during his time in government.
Later, speaking to news agency ANI, Nishikant Dubey called Garg a “despicable” man.
Dubey challenged Garg to say whether he had ever visited the office of any secretary in Delhi or Ranchi. “I won’t be able to recognize the DC or SP of my district. I haven’t even seen the faces of the DC or SP. It would be great if they come to meet me.”
Dubey said the time Garg claims was when he was the chairman of direct and indirect taxes in the public accounts committee. “The chairman has the right to summon any secretary,” he said.
“I want to expose his lies,” Dubey told reporters. “I filed a criminal complaint for defamation. He must apologize to me publicly. If he doesn’t, he will go to jail,” he added.