PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Aug 12, CMC -An activist with the main opposition United National Congress (UNC), Ravi Balgobin Maharaj, has filed a lawsuit against the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Bridgid Annisette-George, after she refused to allow him to respond to alleged defamatory comments made against him in Parliament.
Maharaj’s attorneys, including former attorney general, Anand Ramlogan SC and opposition legislator, Jayanti Lutchmedial, SC, had written to the Speaker in May for an opportunity to have their client respond to the statements made by a government minister, but the Speaker refused his requests.
“The claimant is extremely disappointed by the unfair, irrational and arbitrary denial of his application for a right of reply,” according to the lawsuit that was filed last week.
Maharaj had claimed that on April 26, this year, government legislator, Keith Scotland, an attorney and now Minister in the Ministry of National Security, launched a “scathing and malicious attack” on him while addressing the House of Representatives.
Scotland claimed that the State had expended a little over TT$14 million (One TT dollar=US$0.16 cents) in defending litigation from Maharaj over the health care system. He also contended that Maharaj’s lawsuit affected healthcare workers, who had to take time off their jobs to respond to his “frivolous and vexatious” claims.
But in his lawsuit, Maharaj said ‘the false statements uttered by Mr Scotland SC in Parliament about his non-existent litigation against the regional health authorities, and the direct insinuation that he was filing these frivolous and vexatious claims which caused an unreasonable diversion of medical staff to such an extent that it caused an or contributed to the death of innocent babies.
“Since then, the claimant has been subjected to much embarrassing ridicule, public scorn and contempt,” according to the lawsuit that also notes that Maharaj has since become fearful for his safety because of the hostility of the public against him.
He also contends his constitutional rights were infringed and hopes for monetary compensation for these alleged breaches and he is asking the High Coirt for permission to seek declarations that he was treated unfairly and an order to quash the Speaker’s decisions in May denying him the right of reply under Standing Order 18.
Maharaj will also be seeking an order for the Speaker to reconsider his request.
CMC/af/ir/2024