Lawyers for TV pastor Jim Bakker filed court papers Monday stating Bakker’s religious freedoms have been violated and urging a judge to dismiss a lawsuit against the well-known minister and his ministry.

The lawsuit filed in March by Missouri’s Attorney General Eric Schmitt alleges Bakker made false claims about a “Silver Solution” health supplement on an episode of The Jim Bakker Show in February. The complaint alleges Bakker and Morningside Church Productions made “false promises” that the Silver Solution -- offered by the ministry -- could cure COVID-19. Bakker and Morningside strongly deny the allegations.

“Jim Bakker is being unfairly targeted by those who want to crush his ministry and force his Christian television program off the air,” says Jay Nixon, Bakker’s attorney and former Governor and Attorney General of Missouri. “The video recording of The Jim Bakker Show clearly shows the allegations are false. Bakker did not claim or state that Silver Solution was a cure for COVID-19. This case is about religious freedom.”

r immediately complied with orders to stop offering Silver Solution on his show and ministry website.

Bakker’s supporters say he is the target of an anti-Christian campaign to force him off the air and silence his message.

“There’s something sinister at work here,” says Stephen Strang, founder and CEO of Charisma Media, who came to Bakker’s defense in a recent editorial. “There are forces at this very moment desperate to silence the church and keep the gospel off the air.”

In the Feb. 12 broadcast of The Jim Bakker Show, Bakker questioned Sherrill Sellman, who was introduced as a natural health expert, about the validity of her cure for the coronavirus, reports NPR.