The Lok Sabha on Friday expelled Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, finding her guilty of accepting gifts and cash for raising questions in the parliament.
Lok Sabha discussed the Ethics Committee report against the Trinamool Congress MP in the cash-for-query case. The committee has recommended the expulsion of the member of the House. However, Moitra has been denied permission to talk in the house. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi moved the motion to expel Moitra and a voice vote was conducted.
Earlier today, Ethics Committee Chairman Vinod Kumar Sonkar tabled the panel's first report when the House re-convened at noon after an adjournment during the Question Hour. Trinamool Congress members and some from the Congress trooped in the Well of the House raising slogans demanding a copy of the report. Earlier, Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, urging him to give at least 48 hours to read the ethics panel report recommending the expulsion of party MP Mahua Moitra.
Responding to the expulsion, Moitra said, “If this Modi government thought that by shutting me up they could do away with the Adani issue, let me tell you that this kangaroo court has only shown to all of India that the haste and the abuse of due process you have used demonstrates how important Adani is to you. And to what length you will go to harass a single woman MP into shutting her into submission."
Talking to presspersons outside the Parliament, along with Opposition leaders, Moitra said, “If this Modi government thought that by shutting me up they could do away with the Adani issue, let me tell you that this kangaroo court has only shown to all of India that the haste and the abuse of due process you have used demonstrates how important Adani is to you. And to what length you will go to harass a single woman MP into shutting her into submission."
Moitra said there is no evidence of cash or gifts anywhere and the Ethics panel findings were solely based on written testimonies of 2 persons, whose versions contradict each other in material terms. Moitra said there are no rules governing the sharing of logins. The TMC leader said she is sure CBI would come behind her next and would harass her for six months.
-with agency inputs.