TMC MP Mahua Moitra Expelled From Lok Sabha Over 'Cash For Query' Matter

Lok Sabha expelled Trinamool member Mahua Moitra from the House, adopting the Ethics Committee recommendation in 'cash-for-query' matter.

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

Source : PTI

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra was on Friday expelled from the Lok Sabha in connection with the cash-for-query case, following a parliamentary vote. The decision came after the Ethics Committee recommended her expulsion as a Member of Parliament, citing "immoral and indecent conduct." Speaker Om Birla announced the expulsion, stating, "This House accepts the conclusions of the Committee that MP Mahua Moitra's conduct was immoral and indecent as an MP. So, it is not appropriate for her to continue as an MP."

The expulsion triggered a walkout by the opposition, and Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the day. The Ethics Committee, chaired by Vinod Kumar Sonkar, had submitted a 495-page report recommending Moitra's expulsion over the cash-for-query allegation.

Lashing out at the Modi government, TMC's Mahua Moitra remarked, "You detest nari shakti (women empowerment). You cannot handle power and authority".

  

"This Lok Sabha has also seen the weaponisation of a Parliamentary Committee. Ironically, the ethics committee was set up to serve as a moral compass for members. Instead, it has been abused egregiously today to do exactly what it was never meant to do. Which is to bulldoze the opposition and become another weapon to 'Thok Do' us into submission...The findings are based solely on the written testimonies of two private citizens whose versions contradict each other in material terms none of whom I was allowed to cross-examine. One of the two private citizens is my estranged partner who with malified intention masqueraded as a common citizen in front of the committee. The two testimonies have been used to hang me, they are polar opposites to each other," she said, as quoted by news agency ANI.

She also asserted that the entire case against her was based on the sharing of login details, "but no rules govern this aspect", adding that the Ethics panel was "punishing" her for practice that is "routine, accepted and encouraged in Lok Sabha".

  

She further contended that there is "no evidence of any cash, any gifts anywhere".

Oppn Demanded Time To Study LS Committee Report, Termed It 'Fixed Match'

During the discussion on the report, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi moved a motion for its consideration. Speaker Om Birla emphasised the need for strict decisions to uphold the dignity of the House. He stated, "It is painful that at times the House has to take up such matters, but it is because the dignity of the institution has to be maintained at any cost", as quoted by news agency PTI.

Opposition members sought more time to study the extensive report, with Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury demanding three to four days for a thorough review. The Ethics Committee had adopted its report on November 9, with six members, including suspended Congress member Preneet Kaur, voting in favor. Four opposition members submitted dissent notes, alleging a biased and predetermined outcome.

Businessman Darshan Hiranandani, who claimed to have paid Moitra to raise questions in Parliament about the Adani Group, filed the cash-for-query complaint. He asserted that Moitra targeted industrialist Gautam Adani to embarrass Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

The opposition members denounced the report as a "fixed match," arguing that the complaint lacked supporting evidence, PTI reported. 

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