Kashmir Digits

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has sent a legal notice seeking Rs.10 crores in damages to former J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik for comments about party president Mehbooba Mufti labelling her as a Roshini Act beneficiary.

This comes just two days after Mufti asked Malik to withdraw his purported comments that she was a beneficiary of now-abandoned Roshni scheme.

The legal notice, sent through advocate Anil Sethi, states that Malik, the incumbent governor of Meghalaya, made the statement, calling Mehbooba as beneficiary of Raoshni Act, in order to tarnish the former chief minister’s reputation.

The PDP chief shared a video in which Malik is purportedly seen claiming that National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have got plots of land under the Roshni scheme.

The legal notice, sent through advocate Anil Sethi, who said that it was a fact that “(Mehbooba) has never been beneficiary of State land under Roshni Act and has never taken any land (under the Act) which now stands quashed/ repealed.”

“By virtue of this Legal Notice, I, therefore, call upon you to pay compensatory damages to my client (Mehboooba) to the extent of Rs. 10 crores within 30 days of receipt of this Legal Notice. (This amount of damages/ compensation is not supposed to be utilised by my client for her personal gains/ benefits but shall be donated/ utilised for public good).” Sethi further said.

The Roshni Act was brought in by then chief minister Farooq Abdullah with the aim of granting proprietary rights to occupants of state land in lieu of some charges.

However, the scheme was disbanded after Jammu and Kashmir High Court declared it illegal and directed the CBI to investigate the beneficiaries of the scheme