Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has announced his intention to file a defamation case against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh, who accused him, his wife, and close associates of involvement in corruption.
“The person who is on bail and has put allegations against me and my wife – I’ll file a defamation suit against him, and he will have to answer in court,” Sawant told media on Wednesday, refraining from directly naming Sanjay Singh.
Sawant criticized Singh, claiming the AAP MP has a “habit of making false allegations.” He added, “The MP of the Aam Aadmi Party was in jail for two years in an excise scam. He is out on bail now. He has a habit of making false allegations against people.”
On December 5, Singh, alongside AAP Goa President Amit Palekar, accused the BJP of large-scale corruption in job recruitment during a press conference in New Delhi.
“Goa’s youth are struggling to find jobs. Over the past ten years, the BJP government in Goa has turned employment into a tool of corruption. Jobs have been sold in exchange for bribes, and this malpractice reaches the highest echelons, involving not just ordinary individuals but even Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s wife, his ministers, and their close associates,” Singh alleged.
In response, Sawant stated that his government has already taken action against individuals involved in a cash-for-jobs scam. “If someone has given money for the job, I have asked officials to take action against those people. 25-30 people have already been sent to jail. We have also suspended the government officials who were involved in such practices,” Sawant said.
The allegations and counter-statements have intensified the political friction between the BJP and AAP in Goa, as accusations of corruption continue to dominate the narrative.