Hamilton MP Paul Miller has filed a $ 1.3 million lawsuit against the New Democratic Party of Ontario and leader Andrea Horvat, accused of discrimination, conspiracy and breach of contract.
The party removed Hamilton’s longtime East Stony Creek in March, citing a “pattern of disturbing behavior” that shows it can “harbor Islamophobic, homophobic and racist views”.
In a 14-page lawsuit filed Friday, Miller said he wanted a combined $ 1.3 million in compensation for breach of contract and an obligation of good faith, conspiracy and discrimination.
He also wants a statement that he has been “discriminated against on the grounds of age, marital status and marital status,” it said.
The lawsuit cites the names of Ontario’s NDP, party officials Michael Balagus, Lucy Watson and Horvat, the incumbent Hamilton Center MP amid the provincial election.
The allegations have not been verified in court.
When asked for comment, the Ontario NDP shared a statement in a single line via email.
“We are confident that the party and our leader have done the right thing and that Mr Miller’s request will go nowhere,” said a quote attributed to Watson, the party’s provincial director.
A separate statement from Watson, released on March 23, said Miller had been expelled from the party because of “a pattern of behavior [that] exceed all reasonable limits “, including membership in the anti-Muslim group on Facebook, called the World Coalition against Islam, which was uncovered during the investigation.
“Every other candidate and every other member of the group – in any context and in an attempt to run for any reasonable party – will be disqualified because he was once a member of an Islamophobic, racist group,” the statement said.
MPP says there were “unauthorized entries”
Miller responded to a press conference at Queen’s Park on April 27, saying he had never used social media.
Information technology researchers hired by Miller have found that at least a dozen people in his office have had access to social media pages since it was set up in 2007, he said.
“We have convincing evidence that there have been many unauthorized logins to our account from many devices in many cities,” Miller said at the time.
Miller stands next to a campaign sign during the May Day celebrations at Hamilton Gage Park on May 1. (Dan Taekema / CBC)
His lawsuit alleges that Watson contacted him on March 17 about “disturbing” content on his Facebook account.
The MPP said the only evidence provided was a screenshot of a Facebook statement saying: “You have stopped being a member of the WCAI (World Coalition Against Islam).”
During his press conference at Queen’s Park in April, Miller handed out printouts of the post, which was dated January 30, 2018 and included the name “Paul” at the top.
The lawsuit states that there is “no record” of him joining or participating in the Facebook group, and the IP address associated with the Facebook post is not related to his home or any of his devices.
The real reason he was expelled from the party, Miller said, was his age and marital status.
He claims that Balagus contacted him in February and asked him if he planned to run again. When Miller, 71, said he had done so, the party official told him it was not a good idea, given his age and the NDP would not support him, the lawsuit said.
Miller’s wife, mentioned in the case
The lawsuit also states that Balagus suggests that Miller’s wife and her role as trustee on Hamilton State School Board are another reason not to run.
Miller and his team recorded a conversation between Balagus and Zahid But, the riding president, where it was assumed that people would not like him if he was nominated again, according to the legal document.
“There will be people very upset when Paul is nominated. And this is based mainly on what his wife has done, “said in part a sample of the lawsuit.
Miller’s wife, Carol Peykin Miller, is a trustee of Department 5 of the Hamilton-Wentworth School Board.
Carol Peykin Miller, Paul Miller’s wife, is the trustee of District 5 for the Hamilton-Wentworth School Board. (Carol Peykin Miller / Facebook)
Her time as a trustee includes controversy, such as sanctions and calls for her resignation, following a report that some trustees made racist comments about a former student trustee named Ahona Mehdi.
One of the witnesses quoted in the report said a trustee identified by Mehdi as Paikin Miller and her husband could be heard “laughing and muttering under his breath in outrage” as other board members discussed ending the program. which puts police officers in schools.
Miller’s complaint said the MPP had followed the NDP’s verification process and said the party had not raised concerns since he was first elected in 2007.
The MPP said it intended to run as an independent, but added that the NDP’s actions had left it “at a disadvantage” without staff or finances.
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