New Delhi, Apr. 15 : Union Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal has filed a defamation suit against Vijender Gupta, his rival candidate from the Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha seat.

Sibal has accused the BJP nominee of making "abusive" remarks against him to mislead the public ahead of the polls.

In interviews published in three Hindi newspapers, Gupta is quoted to have stated that Sibal "has fought cases on behalf of school managements and has exploited parents and guardians and that he has a two-faced character."

Sibal's notice asked Gupta to issue a "public apology for statements that are "patently false".

Sibal said the accusation is completely baseless, and were vehemently issued to "mislead the public by making false innuendos" with a view to influencing public opinion.

"Gupta is running a campaign that is bereft of any real issues and is doing this because he knows he cannot match up to my performance in Chandni Chowk," Sibal said.

The notice further said that Sibal, in fact was not entitled to practice and has not appeared in court since May 2004.

Therefore, he could not have represented any school management on the issue of fee hike, the notice points out.

Sibal clarified that he has never been a member of any school management body either before or since he became a Member of Parliament. (ANI)