PMO says no basis to "malicious" rumours linked to Rajnath Singh, son

The Prime Minister's Office has in a statement rejected suggestions of alleged misconduct by Pankaj Singh, the son of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said, "This has reference to reports appearing in a section of the media over the past several weeks, mentioning the Prime Minister, and referring to the conduct of some Union Ministers, and alleged misconduct of the Home Minister's son. The reports are plain lies, motivated and constitute a malicious attempt at character assassination and tarnishing the image of the government."

The statement further read, "Those indulging in such rumour-mongering are damaging the interest of the nation. These reports are strongly denied."

Rajnath Singh is upset after reports in the media claimed that the BJP reportedly overlooked Pankaj, who was seen as a frontrunner for the Noida seat in the Uttar Pradesh bye-polls.