Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra on Thursday claimed that she was subjected to humiliating questions at the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee's hearing on "cash-for-query" allegations against her. She expressed gratitude to Opposition MPs who staged a walkout in protest.
Speaking to PTI, Moitra said she was asked irrelevant details about her personal life and that she registered her protest and submitted that she would reply to any relevant question through an affidavit.
“It was the most unethical hearing possible. While the chairman came with a pre-written script from which he was reading out, which contained the most disgusting, invasive, private details about my personal life, which had nothing to do with the hearing whatsoever,” she alleged.
As per NDTV reports, the TMC leader was asked 'How many times did you contact Hiranandani in 2023?', 'how many times did you visit Dubai?', and 'Which hotel did you stay in ( Dubai)?', NDTV reported.
The TMC leader has been accused of asking questions, which were keyed in through her parliamentary account, at the behest of Hiranandani in return for bribes and favors from the Dubai-based scion of a well-known business family.
In a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Mahua Moitra alleged that "unethical, sordid, prejudiced behavior was meted out" to her during the meeting.
"I write to you in great anguish today to update you on the unethical, sordid, and prejudiced behavior meted out to me at the hearing of the Ethics Committee by the Chairman. I have been subjected to the proverbial "Vastraharan" by him in the presence of all members of the Committee," the letter read.
She requested the Lok Sabha Secretariat to disclose the regulations governing the sharing of one's login and password of the portal to merely type out questions, adding that nothing could be submitted without an OTP, ANI reported.
"Why were these rules never given to MPs and if they were why is every single MP sharing this ID and login with numerous people? Where was this Ethics Committee's conscience when the government used the Israeli software Pegasus to spy on the judiciary, independent journalists, and members of the opposition members? Was this not a grievous breach of national security? Why did this Committee not meet even once since July 2021 in the face of so many instances of unethical conduct by members of the ruling party?" the TMC MP asked.
She further added, “I would like to state that the complainant has provided NO evidence of any cash, the alleged 'bribe-giver' Hiranandani has made NO mention of any cash in his suo-moto affidavit.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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