Congress leader and LoP in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday wrote a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker on the issue of proceedings of the Ethics Committee against TMC MP Mahua Moitra in 'Cash For Query' case.
In the latest development, the report of the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee recommending the expulsion of Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra in a "cash-for-query" case will be tabled in the lower house of Parliament on Monday, sources said.
According to the agenda papers circulated by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, Ethics Committee chairperson Vinod Kumar Sonkar will lay on the table of the House the panel's first report.
The committee, at a meeting on November 9, adopted its report recommending Moitra's expulsion from the Lok Sabha over the "cash-for-query" allegation. Six members of the panel voted in favour of the report, including Congress MP Preneet Kaur who had earlier been suspended from the party. Four members of the panel belonging to opposition parties submitted dissent notes.
The opposition members termed the report a "fixed match" and said the complaint filed by BJP Lok Sabha member Nishikant Dubey, which the panel reviewed, was not supported by a "shred of evidence". Moitra can be expelled only if the House votes in favour of the panel's recommendation. The Winter Session of Parliament begins on Monday and is scheduled to continue till December 22.
Will help her: Mamata
Breaking her silence on the "cash-for-query" allegation against TMC MP Mahua Moitra, party chief Mamata Banerjee had said that plans were in the works to expel her from Parliament but any such action would help the lawmaker from Krishnanagar ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. "Now, they are planning to expel Mahua (from Parliament). She will become more popular as a result. Whatever she used to say inside (Parliament), she will now say those things outside. Would anyone do something like this three months before the elections if he is not stupid?" Banerjee said, addressing a special session of the party at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had forwarded a complaint against the Trinamool Congress member by lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai to the Lok Sabha Speaker, accusing her of taking bribes for asking questions in the House at the behest of businessman Hiranandani to target the Adani Group and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
(With PTI inputs)
