Mahua Moitra To Skip ED Summons In Forex Case Today, Says 'Busy In Election Campaign'

TMC leader Mahua Moitra would not appear before the Enforcement Directorate today because of election campaigning in her constituency

'Busy in election campaign', TMC leader Mahua Moitra, and the party's candidate from the Krishnanagar constituency, has informed that she would not appear before the Enforcement Directorate today for questioning in a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) contravention case in connection with the cash-for-query probe. Moitra has informed that she would be busy campaigning for the Lok Sabha election in Kaligung, an area in her constituency.

“I will be out for campaigning in the Krishnangar constituency in the afternoon,” she told reporters.

She was earlier called for questioning twice by the agency in the matter but skipped those as well citing official work and sought deferment of the notice.

In the present case, Moitra has been asked to appear along with Dubai-based businessman Darshan Hiranandani before the agency.

Moitra was expelled from the Lok Sabha after allegations of bribery for asking questions in Parliament. She was accused of receiving cash and gifts from Hiranandani to attack Prime Minister Modi and industrialist Gautam Adani -- a charge she has repeatedly denied.

On Saturday, sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided her premises in the cash-for-query case after the Lokpal directed the agency to probe the allegations levelled against her by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey.

TMC Alleges Political Vendetta

Meanwhile, the TMC has lashed out decrying political vendetta by the BJP-led government at the Centre ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and accused the saffron party of misusing agencies for electoral advantage.

"This is nothing but vendetta politics against Mahua Moitra. The BJP doesn't have any issue to fight the TMC and is misusing central agencies ahead of the elections," TMC spokesperson Krishanu Mitra said.

"She was not allowed to present her case before the parliamentary panel and then she was expelled. Now, the CBI raids and ED summons. This won't yield any results for the BJP," Mitra added.

However, BJP leader Rahul Sinha accused the TMC of corruption and said, "Whenever the ED or CBI raid or summon TMC leaders, they claim that the actions are politically motivated. The reality is that the TMC is deeply mired in corruption. Whatever Moitra has done is a shame for parliamentary democracy."