The Lok Sabha’s Ethics Committee is set to convene its first meeting on Thursday to probe the “cash for query” accusation against TMC MP Mahua Moitra. During the meeting, BJP parliamentarian Nishikant Dubey, who filed the complaint, and advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, have been called to record their statements. In his complaint submitted to Speaker Om Birla, Dubey has referenced documents shared by Dehadrai. The Speaker has subsequently referred the matter to the committee, which is presided over by BJP MP Vinod Kumar Sonkar. Dubey has alleged that the advocate, who was once closely associated with Moitra before a falling out, has presented “indisputable evidence of financial transactions” between her and businessman Darshan Hiranandani, aimed at targeting the Adani Group and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The panel’s schedule for Thursday states, “Oral Evidence of Shri Jai Anant Dehadrai, Advocate in respect of complaint dated 15 October, 2023 given by Dr Nishikant Dubey, MP against Smt Mahua Moitra, MP for alleged direct involvement in cash for query in Parliament. Oral evidence of Dr Nishikant Dubey, MP, in respect of complaint dated 15 October, 2023 given by him against Smt. Mahua Moitra, MP for alleged direct involvement in cash for query in Parliament.” Moitra, a fiery member of the TMC, has dismissed the charges as the falsehoods of a “jilted ex,” alluding to Dehadrai. She has accused the Adani Group of orchestrating these allegations to target her because of her persistent inquiries into the conglomerate’s practices and transactions.
A cash-for-query scandal recurrence after 18 years!
NEW DELHI: Nishikant Dubey, a Lok Sabha MP of BJP, has raised allegations against TMC MP Mahua Moitra, asserting that she received “bribes” from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to pose questions against the Adani conglomerate in return for “favours.” The incident had happened 18 years ago, during the first term of the UPA government under the leadership of Manmohan Singh, a digital portal unveiled a sting operation titled “Operation Duryodhana.” This operation exposed MPs who allegedly showed a willingness to promote a company and ask questions in the House in exchange for monetary compensation.
The digital portal claimed that the investigation spanned eight months and included 56 videos, 70 audiotapes, and 900 phone calls. The journalists, Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj, portrayed themselves as representatives of a fictitious lobbying organization known as the North Indian Small Manufacturers Association (NISMA) and infiltrated the connections between MPs and their intermediaries. They succeeded in having MPs from various political parties submit over 60 questions in the stringent question balloting system of the Indian Parliament, with 25 questions ultimately selected.
Among the MPs implicated in the sting operation, six were from the BJP, including Chhatarpal Singh Lodha (Odisha), Anna Saheb M.K. Patil (Erandol, Maharashtra), Chandra Pratap Singh (Sidhi, Madhya Pradesh), Pradeep Gandhi (Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh), Suresh Chandel (Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh), and G. Mahajan (Jalgaon, Maharashtra).