The Lok Sabha ethics committee has asked Trinamul MP Mahua Moitra to appear before it on October 31, after the panel’s first meeting on the cash-for-query charges on Thursday witnessed heated exchanges between BJP and Opposition members and voting over procedure, sources said.
BJP member Nishikant Dubey and advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, who have accused Moitra of taking cash to ask questions in the Lok Sabha, appeared before the ethics panel to have their statements recorded and present evidence.
Sources, however, said the two had no fresh evidence to present.
"Looking into the seriousness of the issue, the committee decided to summon Mahua Moitra on October 31,” panel chairperson and BJP member Vinod Kumar Sonkar told reporters after the meeting.
“Secondly, the committee also decided to send letters to the ministry of home affairs and the IT ministry to seek the details about the conversations between (industrialist Darshan) Hiranandani, Mahua Moitra and the lawyer (Dehadrai).”
As the committee began its meeting, the Opposition members objected to Sonkar's decision to summon the complainants first, sources said. They argued that the proper procedure was to call the accused first.
They said that when they lodged complaints against BJP members, the privileges committee of the House summoned the accused first, and asked why this dual policy when the same officers were on both panels.
Amid the exchanges between the ruling and Opposition sides, a vote was called to decide the procedure. With both sides present in equal strength — five each — Sonkar’s vote endorsed the procedure to call the complainants first.
The committee has 15 members but only 11 (including the chairperson) were present.
Dehadrai was made to wait outside as the debate and voting took place. At one point, Sonkar referred to one Opposition member as “halla (shouting) brigade”, sources said.
The Opposition members accused Sonkar of “following a script given to him” as the chairperson mostly read out from written text about the case.
Opposition members objected also to Sonkar speaking about the case during an interview with a news channel, claiming the rules prohibit such acts since they violate parliamentary privilege.
BJP members, however, argued that Sonkar had not said anything about the deliberations within the committee.
Sources said that Dehadrai, who appeared first, was asked why he had chosen to accuse Moitra of wrongdoing only after falling out with her.
To most of the queries about his intent, Dehadrai simply said that everything was in his affidavit, the sources said. Moitra has described the lawyer as a “jilted ex” and denied his allegations.
The ethics committee also discussed summoning Hiranandani since he has in a signed affidavit alleged he footed some of Moitra’s bills and provided her with questions to ask in Parliament. He has also claimed that Moitra shared her Parliament login ID with him so he could pose questions on her behalf.
A problem, however, arose since Hiranandani is a Dubai citizen and the committee decided to explore ways of summoning him, sources said.
The examination of Dubey and Dehadrai took over three hours. This is the first time in over a year that the committee has held a meeting.
Dubey told reporters he had answered all the questions asked by panel members. “Promised (the committee) to fully cooperate in the investigation,” he said.
Dubey had complained against Moitra to the Lok Sabha Speaker on the basis of Dehadrai’s affidavit, following which the matter was referred to the ethics panel.
Dubey and Dehadrai were seen seated in the same car and talking to the media on Thursday. Dehadrai too said he had answered all the questions from the committee.