Alappuzha: The First Class Magistrate Court in Alappuzha on Wednesday ordered an inquiry against BJP leader Sobha Surendran in a defamation case filed by All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary KC Venugopal. After receiving the Congress leader’s complaint in the file, Judge Shana Beegam ordered to serve a summons to the BJP leader, directing her to appear before the court on May 8.

KC Venugopal, a Lok Sabha MP from Alappuzha, approached the court over allegations made by Sobha Surendran during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Earlier, the Congress MP had sent a legal notice to the BJP leader, demanding to withdraw her statements and issue an apology for what he termed as character assassination. As she did not respond, Venugopal proceeded with legal action.

Venugopal also filed a complaint with the Alappuzha South Police regarding the issue and later appeared before the court to record his statement.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Sobha Surendran was Venugopal’s opponent in the Alappuzha parliamentary constituency. During the campaign, she accused the Congress leader of illegal mining, alleging that he had amassed crores of rupees through mining operations in Kerala. She also claimed that Venugopal and former Rajasthan minister Shish Ram Ola were involved in international deals related to illegal mining.