Varun Gandhi rejects honey trap charges as 'false and frivolous'

"I would like to point out the false and frivolous nature of the charges, and the impossibility of these allegations," Gandhi said in a detailed statement addressed to "my fellow countrymen".

Varun said while he was member of both the Defence Standing Committee and Defence Consultative Committee from 2009, he never attended a single meeting of the Defence Consultative Committee and very few of the meetings of the Defence Standing Committee.

"Clearly I was neither actively seeking out nor passing on any information. Had there been any hidden agenda or motivation as alleged in the letter, it would have been reflected in my attendance," he said.

Varun also clarified that as a first-time opposition MP, he could not and did not have access to any sensitive defence information.

"So the question of being allegedly coerced into revealing anything does not even arise," he said.

He said the case has been extensively investigated by both the CBI and the ED over several years on the basis of which chargesheets have already been filed.

"In none of the proceedings has my name ever cropped up, nor has there been any indication of my involvement in any capacity whatsoever. Had the top investigative agencies even the least suspicion or proof of any involvement on my part in all these years, it would surely have been reported by now," Varun said in the statement.

The BJP leader also said that he will take legal action against those who had deliberately sought to tarnish his reputation.

"My family and I have been deeply traumatised by these lies. I am taking legal recourse against those who have deliberately sought to tarnish my reputation and public standing," he said.

Swaraj Abhiyan leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan on Thursday released a letter written by US-based lawyer C. Edmonds Allen to the Prime Minister's Office in which he has alleged that Gandhi was "honey trapped and compromised" by defence middleman Abhishek Verma.

"I have never met Edmonds Allen, who has written this letter containing these allegations. Nor do I have any details of who he is, or what he does, except as has been reported in the press of him being a former associate of Abhishek Verma," Gandhi said.

"I first made acquaintance with Verma when I was a college student in England. He was introduced as the son of late Veena and Shrikant Verma, both Members of Parliament from a reputed family. We met socially over a short period of time.

"It has been many years since we last met. At no point did we ever discuss work, neither his nor mine," he said.

Varun said that media reports suggested that Allen and Verma had some business dealings which went sour.

"It would seem that a disgruntled Allen is now seeking maximum publicity for his charges against his erstwhile associate. He is, therefore, naming public figures like myself in order to attract greater public attention for his grievances, real or imagined," he said.

"I have needlessly been sought to be embroiled in a controversy in which I have no part," he said.