Surat, Oct 1 (IANS): In a major development, Gujarat Congress leaders on Tuesday apologised unconditionally to former Chief Minister Vijay Rupani for levelling baseless charges against the latter and admitted on record that their accusations were politically motivated and lacked any evidence.

Vijay Rupani's counsel Ansh Bhardwaj in a video message confirmed the unconditional apology issued by the Congress leaders, in writing.

He further said that the former Gujarat CM has accepted their apology and has sought court's permission to withdraw the defamation lawsuit that he filed against them.

Two years ago, Vijay Rupani had slapped a legal notice to Congress leaders including Sukhram Rathwa and his associates for claiming that the former chief minister was part of a land scam worth Rs 500 crore.

The Congress leaders in a press conference had claimed that the then BJP government under Vijay Rupani changed the zoning of land belonging to the Rajkot Urban Development Authority (RUDA) from residential to industrial for benefitting a corporate group.

Rupani's legal counsel Ansh Bhardwarj informed that the Congress leaders led by the then Leader of Opposition Sukhram Rathwa have admitted on record that there was no evidence behind their wild charges and it was mere political accusation to show the then BJP government in bad light.

"Vijay Rupani had objected to their unwarranted charges in 2022 and demanded that they retract their allegations and file an apology. When they refused to oblige, a criminal defamation case was filed in Gandhinagar court by Vijay Rupani. Eyewitnesses recorded their statements and the trial continued. Now, all four Congress leaders have submitted an unconditional apology to Vijay Rupani for making unfounded claims," said Ansh Bhardwaj.

He further mentioned that Vijay Rupani has sought court's nod for withdrawing the defamation suit against the Congress leaders.