Shimla, June 7 -- The simmering tension between former chief secretaries of Himachal Pradesh escalated on Saturday after former state Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) chairman and chief secretary Shrikant Baldi termed the FIR registered against him on the complaint of recently retired chief secretary Sanjay Gupta false, baseless, malicious, and a blatant misuse of official position. The sharp rebuttal comes just a day after the police registered the first information report against Baldi on Gupta's complaint. Gupta accused Baldi of deliberately issuing and widely circulating a defamatory press statement aimed at damaging his reputation, credibility, and standing in public estimation, while creating prejudice against him in the discharge of his official duties. The FIR was registered under Sections 248 for fabricated criminal charges, 351 for criminal intimidation, and 356(2) for criminal defamation under the BNS. In a detailed statement, Baldi hit back, claiming that Gupta utilised his final day in office as chief secretary on May 31 to file the case purely to divert attention from illegal orders he had passed regarding the Chester Hills project. The core of the bitter dispute involves a controversial land transaction linked to the Chester Hills housing project in Solan. Baldi revealed that an inquiry conducted by the sub-divisional magistrate of Solan had uncovered prima facie violations of Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act involving the purchase of 274 bighas of land. Rebutting the charges, the former chief secretary, who is presently posted as chairperson of the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) after his retirement on May 31, said, "Baldi has been part of a malicious campaign against me owing to professional rivalry." htc...