A Twitter partner has sued Elon Musk, who has accused Twitter of plummeting his stock price and finding a reason to withdraw his $ 44 billion offer to buy the company or reduce the price.

According to the lawsuit, Tesla CEO Elon Musk released the tweets and statements that aimed to raise doubts about the deal that rocked the social media site for several weeks.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday by Virginia-based Twitter contributor William Hirsniak, seeks class-action status and seeks federal certification in San Francisco to certify the deal and award shareholders the compensation allowed by law.

Musk said last week that his attempt to buy Twitter would not continue unless he received evidence of the number of fake accounts on the platform, which added to the uncertainty surrounding the deal.

The lawsuit alleges that Musk tweeted that the purchase was “suspended” in violation of a purchase agreement that did not provide an opportunity to suspend the purchase.

The lawsuit alleges that Musk negotiated the acquisition of Twitter in late April without the proper diligence expected in such a major deal.

The lawsuit alleges that the agreement only requires the approval of Twitter shareholders and regulators and should take effect by October this year.

According to the complaint, Musk was involved in statements, tweets and behavior, cast doubt on the deal and significantly reduced Twitter’s stake.

The complainant considered that Musk’s goal was to buy Twitter at a very low price or to obtain foreign exchange to withdraw from the contract without penalty.

“Mask market manipulation worked – Twitter has lost $ 8 billion in value since the acquisition was announced,” the complaint added.

Shares of Twitter rose slightly to close at $ 39.52 on Thursday, with investors skeptical of a buy at $ 54.20, a price Musk initially offered.

“Musk’s disregard for the bond laws demonstrates how one can ignore the law and the tax code to build one’s wealth at the expense of other Americans,” the lawsuit said.

For its part, Twitter has stated in its registration documents with its regulators that it is committed to completing the sale without delay within the agreed price and terms.

Elon Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment in an Tesla Communications office email.