Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra has been expelled from the Lok Sabha following an Ethics Committee report into the ‘cash for query’ charges against her. Ms Moitra, 49, was accused of taking bribes, including Rs 2 crore in cash and “luxury gift items”, from businessman Darshan Hiranandani, in exchange for asking questions critical of the Narendra Modi government in Parliament.

Ms Moitra was also accused of surrendering log-in credentials to a confidential account on the parliamentary website so Mr Hiranandani could post questions directly. A fiery critic of the Modi government, Ms Moitra had denied the bribery charges but admitted to sharing the log-in details.

READ | “Serious Misdemeanours Call For…”: What Ethics Report On Mahua Moitra Says

After a tempestuous discussion and voice vote, Mr Birla said, “This House accepts the conclusions of the Committee – that MP Mahua Moitra’s conduct was immoral and indecent. So, it is not appropriate for her to continue as an MP…”

#WATCH | Cash for query matter | TMC’s Mahua Moitra expelled as a Member of the Lok Sabha; House adjourned till 11th December.

Speaker Om Birla says, “…This House accepts the conclusions of the Committee that MP Mahua Moitra’s conduct was immoral and indecent as an MP. So, it… pic.twitter.com/mUTKqPVQsG

— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2023

Hours earlier the Ethics Committee presented its report – a nearly 500-page tome – in the House, triggering a furious row between the ruling BJP and the opposition, including Ms Moitra’s party.

In the brief discussion that followed, apoplectic opposition MPs from the Congress and Trinamool demanded more time to study the material, and fought for Ms Moitra to be allowed to speak.

However, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla refused permission, citing the 2005 expulsion of 10 MPs, including six from the BJP, who were caught in a similar controversy. Then Speaker, Somnath Chatterjee, said the MPs had lost the right to speak in the House after the report was tabled.

READ | Mahua Moitra Denied Permission To Speak During Discussion On Ethics Report

The report against Ms Moitra noted “allegations of accepting illegal gratification (are) clearly established and are undeniable”, and that “taking gifts from (a) businessman to whom she handed over log-in (details) amounts to a quid pro quo… unbecoming of an MP and is unethical conduct”.

On the point Ms Moitra accepted cash as part of the bribes, the report called for the government to “criminally investigate and unearth the ‘money trail'”, for which it said it “does not have expertise”.

The Ethics Committee’s final recommendation was that “…Smt Mahua Moitra, MP, may be expelled from the membership of the Seventeenth Lok Sabha”. It also called for “a legal institutional inquiry by the Government… in view of unethical, heinous, and criminal conduct of Smt Mahua Moitra…”

This morning, as she walked into Parliament, a typically fierce Ms Moitra paused only to tell reporters, “Maa Durga aa gayi hai, ab dekhenge…Jab naash manuj par chhata hai, pehle vivek mar jaata hai (Maa Durga has come! Now we will see.. when destruction comes, conscience dies first).”

#WATCH | TMC MP Mahua Moitra says, “Maa Durga aa gayi hai, ab dekhenge…Jab naash manuj par chhata hai, pehle vivek mar jaata hai. They have started ‘vastraharan’ and now you will watch ‘Mahabharat ka rann’.”

Ethics Panel report on her to be tabled in Lok Sabha today. pic.twitter.com/r28o2ABVbB

— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2023

Trinamool boss and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of having “planned” the expulsion of Ms Moitra – who is one of the ruling party’s fiercest and most vocal critics. “… but this will help her before the election,” Ms Banerjee said. The 2024 Lok Sabha election is just months away.

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Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra – expelled from the Lok Sabha today – accused the parliamentary ethics committee that looked into cash-for-query allegations against her of “breaking every rule”.

“The committee broke every rule… Tomorrow, the CBI will be sent to my home to harass me,” Ms Moitra told reporters outside parliament today.

The ethics committee submitted the report in parliament today after weeks of cross-examining all the people involved in the matter, including the complainants lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai and BJP leader Nishikant Dubey.

Ms Mahua was not allowed to speak on the matter in parliament today, which drew protest from some Opposition leaders who said she should be allowed to present her view too.

“… The Lok Sabha has presided over the most tenacious witch-hunt of one of the 78 MPs, a first-timer, a single woman, with no political lineage… This Lok Sabha has also seen the weaponisation of a parliamentary committee,” Ms Moitra told reporters today.

“Ironically, the ethics committee which was set up to serve as a moral compass for members, instead has been abused 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. This committee and the report have broken every rule in the book,” the visibly furious Trinamool Congress MP, flanked by Opposition MPs, told reporters on the steps outside parliament.

The ethics committee doesn’t see Ms Moitra’s allegations that she was not allowed to speak today as a valid one. She had walked out during her cross-examination, calling the committee’s questioning “filthy”.

Any question of her not being allowed to speak today doesn’t arise as she was given an opportunity to present her views at the committee’s meeting. It was up to her whether she waned to speak or not at the committee meeting held on November 2, but she can’t later claim she has not been given an opportunity to speak – this appears to be the committee’s reasoning.

Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra was expelled from Lok Sabha today following an Ethics Committee report held her guilty of taking bribes in exchange for criticising the government.

The 49-year-old MP faces accusations of receiving cash and luxurious gifts from businessman Darshan Hiranandani in exchange for posing questions in Parliament that painted the Narendra Modi government in a negative light.

Timeline Of The ‘Cash For Query’ Case:

How It Began

On October 14, Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and forwarded a copy to the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, seeking to address alleged corruption and money laundering.

Ms Moitra denied all allegations against her, dismissing Mr Dehadrai as a “jilted ex.” In response, Mr Dehadrai wrote to the Delhi Police, claiming he feared “a very serious threat to his life” due to his complaint and alleging a direct attempt to coerce him into retracting it.

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey requested the immediate suspension of Ms Moitra in a letter to Mr Birla. Mr Dubey alleged that Ms Moitra had accepted bribes from Mr Hiranandani in exchange for asking parliamentary questions critical of PM Modi and the Adani Group. These actions, according to Mr Dubey, constituted breaches of parliamentary privilege, contempt of the House, and potentially criminal conspiracy.

Mr Dubey’s complaint triggered a hearing by the Ethics Panel of Parliament, summoning both him and Mr Dehadrai. 

Darshan Hiranandani’s Explosive Claims

Mr Hiranandani, meanwhile, submitted an affidavit alleging Ms Moitra shared her parliamentary credentials with him to facilitate the framing and posting of questions targeting the Adani Group, a measure she perceived as the “only way” to reach PM Modi. He admitted that he used the Trinamool MP’s parliamentary login ID and password to post questions from Dubai.

Ms Moitra conceded to sharing her parliamentary login credentials with Mr Hiranandani. While acknowledging a receipt of gifts from him, she clarified that they were limited to personal items like “one scarf, some lipsticks, and other makeup items including eye shadow.” Ms Moitra, however, denied any bribery and demanded the opportunity to cross-examine the businessman.

Mahua Moitra’s Defiance 

Ms Moitra defied the Ethics Committee’s initial summons to appear on October 31. She explained her stance, stating that the Committee chairman had publicly announced her summons on live television before she received the official notification via email at 7:20 pm.

She further highlighted the media’s access to all complaints and affidavits before her, labeling it a “selective leak of a plea bargain.” She characterized the proceedings as a “witch hunt” targeting any politician who dared to question the Adani Group.

Mahua Moitra Walks Out

On November 2, Ms Moitra agreed to appear before the Ethics Committee but staged a walked out.

In a scathing letter to the Speaker, she accused the panel of engaging in “proverbial vastraharan (stripping),” highlighting her belief that their questioning was biased and unfair.

The Ethics Committee countered Ms Moitra’s claims, stating that her lack of cooperation and refusal to answer further questions led to her premature departure. 

Ethics Panel Report Submitted To Speaker

On November 10, the Ethics Committee submitted its report to the Speaker, recommending Ms Moitra’s expulsion. The report accused her of accepting “illegal gratifications” from Mr Hiranandani in exchange for raising questions in Parliament on his behalf.

Six out of ten members of the Ethics Committee voted to adopt the 479-page report. The remaining four members, belonging to opposition parties, registered dissent.

Report Tabled In Parliament 

On December 8, the Ethics Committee report was tabled in parliament. The panel’s chairman Vinod Kumar Sonkar tabled the report during the afternoon session, prompting immediate chaos in the House.

Trinamool Congress and Congress members stormed the Well of the House, demanding access to the report and a discussion before any action was taken. Kalyan Banerjee, a senior TMC member, further insisted on a debate before any vote on Ms Moitra’s expulsion.

Amid the uproar, the presiding officer, BJP’s Rajendra Agrawal, adjourned the proceedings till 2 pm, unable to contain the commotion.

Mahua Moitra Expelled

Following the tabling of the report, Ms Moitra was expelled. Despite a heated debate and demands from Ms Moitra and opposition members for her to speak, she was not given the opportunity to defend herself before the vote. 

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi moved a motion for her expulsion based on “unethical conduct”, which was subsequently adopted by a voice vote.