'Will Fight Inside Parliament And Outside': Mahua Moitra's Reaction After Lok Sabha Expulsion

The Opposition members of Lok Sabha staged a walkout after Mahua Moitra's expulsion from Parliament.

TMC MP Mahua Moitra arrives during the Winter session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Friday, Dec. 8, 2023.

Source : PTI

On the recommendation of the Ethics Panel, the lower house of Parliament on Friday adopted the resolution, resulting in the expulsion of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra in a 'cash-for-query' matter. As soon as the Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla announced the adoption of the resolution by the House, it was adjourned for the day till December 11. The opposition members of the lower house of Parliament staged a symbolic walkout with Mahua Moitra outside Parliament.

Speaking on her expulsion, Mahu Moitra said, "I am 49 years old, I will fight you for the next 30 years inside Parliament, outside Parliament."

VIDEO | "I am 49 years old, I will fight you for the next 30 years inside Parliament, outside Parliament," says TMC leader @MahuaMoitra after Lok Sabha expelled her from the House, adopting Ethics Committee recommendation in 'cash-for-query' matter.

Earlier, Opposition members… pic.twitter.com/xprZDxKIW2

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"Ethics panel findings solely based on written testimonies of 2 persons whose versions contradict each other in material terms. Ethics panel punishing me for practice that is routine, accepted and encouraged in Lok Sabha," the expelled TMC MP said on the Parliament premises.

"In essence, I have been found guilty of breaching a code of ethics that does not exist...LS ethics panel, its report has broken every rule in the book; it's a weapon to force us into submission," Mahua Moitra said after expulsion from House. "MPs are like conveyor belts to bring questions from general public to Parliament; kangaroo court punished me without evidence," Moitra was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. 

"The 17th Lok Sabha has indeed been historic. It is a House which saw the passage of the Women's Reservation Rescheduling Bill, but it has presided over the most tenacious witch-hunt of one of 78 women MPs. This Lok Sabha has also seen the weaponisation of a Parliamentary committee. Ironically, the Ethics Committee, which was set up to serve as a moral compass for Members; instead it has been abused today to do what it was never meant to do," Moitra said further.

The Ethics Committee of the Lok Sabha had submitted a report today recommending Moitra's expulsion over the "cash-for-query" allegation. The report, tabled by Ethics Committee Chairman Vinod Kumar Sonkar, suggested that Moitra had accepted payments from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to raise questions in Parliament about the Adani Group. Hiranandani claimed in a signed affidavit that Moitra aimed to "malign and embarrass" Prime Minister Narendra Modi through her actions.

On November 9, the Committee adopted its report, with six members voting in favour, including suspended Congress member Preneet Kaur. Four opposition members of the panel submitted dissent notes, alleging a "fixed match" and contending that the complaint by BJP Lok Sabha member Nishikant Dubey lacked supporting evidence.