3 Alberta residents deny making false statements about Amarjeet Sohi
Image | Sohi Jan. 12
Caption: Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi launched a defamation lawsuit against three Alberta residents last year. The defendants are denying the allegations and two of them have filed a counterclaim against Sohi. (Manuel Carrillos Avalos/Radio Canada)
Three people facing a defamation lawsuit from Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi are denying that they repeated false statements about him to damage his reputation.
Sohi launched the $750,000-lawsuit in October, alleging Abdusselam Huzeyfe Bezirgan produced a video series "around the false claims that Sohi is involved in serious criminality and corruption."
Sohi's statement of claim, which was filed with the Edmonton Court of King's Bench, said Bezirgan and Bob Rai, one of Bezirgan's sources, claimed in interviews that Sohi and a close family member "improperly benefited from a major infrastructure project in Regina with Sohi unlawfully using his influence as a minister of the federal government to award a trucking contract for the project to a non-arm's length company."
Bhullar, Sohi said in the document, "shared the defamatory videos and added his own false claims."
The allegations have not been proven in court.
Sohi has pledged to donate any proceeds from the lawsuit.
Lawyers for Rai and Bezirgan filed a statement of defence on Tuesday afternoon.
The document said Bezirgan is the founder and principal of the journalistic organization Media...
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