Meghan Markle accuses Buckingham Palace of perpetuating lies

London:

Prince Harry’s wife Meghan has accused Buckingham Palace of ‘perpetuating lies’ about her and her spouse, saying the royal couple would not be silent when telling their story.

Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, made the comments to American talk show host Oprah Winfrey in an interview explaining why they left their royal roles which are scheduled to air on American television on Sunday.

A preliminary snippet of the interview was released on Wednesday, hours after Buckingham Palace said it was “very concerned” by reports from the Times newspaper that assistants working for Meghan two years ago had been intimidated by her.

Harry and Meghan have released a statement denying that she intimidated anyone.

“How do you feel about the Palace hearing you tell your truth today?” Winfrey asks Meghan in the snippet.

Meghan replied: “I don’t know how they could expect that after all this time we would just stay silent, if there is an active role The Firm is playing in perpetuating the lies about us.” The cabinet is the name the British royal family sometimes uses to describe themselves.

“And if that carries a risk of losing things, I mean, there is already a lot that has been lost,” Meghan added.

The interview was recorded before The Times newspaper published a report citing anonymous sources claiming that an assistant to Harry and Meghan filed a complaint in October 2018, alleging that Meghan had reduced some of her assistants to tears and had treated others so badly that they quit.

The newspaper said Harry urged the assistant, who has now left his staff, to drop the complaint, and that never progressed.

The Times said he was contacted by former staff who wanted the public to have a preview before Winfrey’s interview aired – and that lawyers for the couple called the allegations a slander orchestrated by the palace.

Reuters could not independently verify the report.

“We are clearly very concerned about the Times’ allegations following statements made by former staff members of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement.

The royal household “does not and will not tolerate bullying or harassment in the workplace,” he added.

He said his HR team would look into the allegations and that staff members involved at the time would be invited to participate.

“SAD BY THE ATTACK”

A spokeswoman for Meghan said earlier that she was “saddened by this latest attack on her character, particularly as someone who has been the target of bullying herself and is deeply committed to supporting those who suffered pain and trauma “.

Meghan and Harry, who tied the knot in May 2018, stepped down from their official duties in March last year to forge new careers and a financially independent life in California.

This decision was confirmed last month, when they also handed over all of their royal patronages. They said their move was fueled in part by intense press intrusion.

However, Meghan had also previously indicated that she felt she did not have the full support of the Royal Family.

In court documents submitted as part of her successful privacy action against the mass-circulation Mail on Sunday, her lawyers said she felt “unprotected” while pregnant with their son Archie.

(This story was not edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)