#MeToo allegations false & fabricated, will take legal action: Akbar

Union minister M J Akbar on Sunday rejected allegations of sexual misconduct levelled against him by several women as "false, fabricated and spiced up", as he questioned its timing months before the Lok Sabha polls, and vowed legal action.

Hours after returning from a trip to Africa, the Minister of State for External Affairs issued a statement trashing the charges, saying accusations without evidence has become a "viral fever" among some sections.

"Why has this storm risen a few months before a general election? Is there an agenda? You be the judge," he said.

"The allegations of misconduct made against me are false and fabricated, spiced up by innuendo and malice. I could not reply earlier as I was on an official tour abroad," he said.

Stating that these allegations have caused irreparable damage to his reputation, the BJP Rajya Sabha MP said his lawyers would decide the next course of action after looking into the allegations against him.

"Whatever be the case, now that I have returned, my lawyers will look into these wild and baseless allegations in order to decide our future course of legal action," he said.

Terming the entire situation as distressing, Akbar said, "Lies do not have legs, but they do contain poison, which can be whipped in to a frenzy."