The Ethics Panel will on Thursday adopt a draft report on the allegations levelled against Mahua Moitra and is likely to take a grim view of the charges against her.
New Delhi: The Ethics Committee of Lok Sabha which is probing the the cash-for-query allegations Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra, has reportedly recommended her disqualification from the House, according to a media report on Wednesday.
Citing sources, India Today reported that the Ethics Panel has recommended revoking Moitra’s Lok Sabha membership and urged the government to investigate the money trail between the TMC MP and businessman Darshan Hiranandani.
As per the report, the Ethics Committee has also condemned the behavior of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP Danish Ali for distorting the question asked by the committee Chairman to Mahua Moitra during the a panel meeting on November 2.
Quoting sources, the report said the panel raised “serious objections” to the BSP MP’s behaviour during the said meeting and accused him of provoking public sentiments and hurting the self-respect of the Chairman and other members.
Ethics Panel to adopt draft report
The Ethics Panel will on Thursday (November 9) adopt a draft report on the allegations levelled against Mahua Moitra and there are clear indications that the committee may take a grim view of the charges against the TMC leader, news agency PTI said in a report.
As per the PTI report, the panel is likely to take a grim view of the charges against Moitra, more so after she accused its chief Vinod Kumar Sonkar of asking filthy and personal questions to her in the last meeting before walking out in a rage along with opposition members.
There are indications that the committee may make a recommendation against Moitra in its report to Speaker Birla amid a possibility of dissent notes from opposition members.
Citing sources, the PTI report said the committee is also expected to underline its unhappiness at the conduct of some opposition members during its proceedings and make a mention of it in its recommendations to the House.
They said the committee may make recommendation against BSP member Danish Ali, who was loudest in his attack on Sonkar’s “indecent and personal” questions to Moitra.
Sonkar had described the conduct of members like Danish Ali and JD (U)’s Giridhari Yadav unethical.
The 15-member committee has seven members from the BJP, three from the Congress, and one each from BSP, Shiv Sena, YSRCP, CPI(M) and JDU.
So far, the draft report has not been circulated to the members of the committee, sources in the opposition said.
Congress sources said its members N Uttam Kumar Reddy and V Vaithilingam will submit dissent notes. BSP member Kunwar Danish Ali is also set to submit his dissent note.
All five opposition members who attended the November 2 meeting walked out of the proceedings, alleging that Sonkar asked personal and indecent questions to her regarding her travels, hotel stay and telephone calls.
Lokpal has ordered CBI probe against Moitra, claimed Dubey
In a related but separate development, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Wednesday said the Lokpal has ordered a CBI probe against Moitra on his complaint of alleged corruption by her.
Hitting back, Moitra said the CBI needs to first file an FIR on Rs 13,000 crore Adani coal “scam”.
“National security issue is how dodgy foreign portfolio investor (FPI) owned (inc Chinese & UAE ) Adani firms buying Indian ports & airports … Then CBI welcome to come, count my shoes,” she posted on X.
The ethics panel was scheduled to meet on Tuesday to consider and adopt its draft report but the meeting was rescheduled for Thursday.
On Tuesday, Moitra had claimed that the meeting was postponed to keep a Congress member away from the proceedings and adopt the report by a majority, prompting a sharp retort from Dubey.
Moitra claimed that no draft report of the committee was circulated to the members and that the BJP leaders were reaching out to allies to ensure their attendance to adopt the report by majority.
Dubey took a dig at the Trinamool Congress MP contending that it was her guilty conscience that was leading her to worry about the proceedings of the parliamentary panel.
Cash-for-query row
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had approached Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla against Mahua Moitra, accusing her of asking questions in Lok Sabha to target the Adani Group at the behest of businessman Darshan Hiranandani in exchange for cash and gifts.
‘Adani wanted to cut a deal’
On October 27, Moitra levelled explosive charges against business magnate Gautam Adani, claiming that the Adani Group Chairman approached her twice in the last three via two Lok Sabha MPs and wanted to “work out a deal”.
Moitra claimed that Adani wanted to sit down with her and offer her a deal but she rejected his advances and refused to meet him.
“Mr Adani has approached me via two Lok Sabha MPs in the last three years to sit across the table with him and work out a deal I have refused,” India Today had quoted Mahua Moitra as saying.
The TMC leader claimed Gautam Adani was offering her cash to not ask questions in the House.
“The issue is, he was giving cash to not question,” she said, according to India Today.
Moitra said she turned down Adani’s “deal” and never met him in person even though the billionaire approached her twice in three years “via two Lok Sabha MPs”. Mahua, however, did not name the two MPs who purportedly approached her on behalf of Adani.
(With PTI inputs)