Mahua Moitra went beyond all limits of decency, talked about her personal life, says Ethics Committee member
Aparajita Sarangi, a member of the Parliament Ethics Committee said TMC MP Mahua Moitra “went beyond all limits of decency” and “spoke for more than one hour and she talked about her personal life in which I don't think anybody was interested”.
Lok Sabha Ethics committee’s chairperson Vinod Sonkar alleged on Friday that Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra only created a ruckus to avoid giving answers during the investigation into the cash-for-query case. Meanwhile, another member of the Parliament Ethics Committee said Moitra "went beyond all limits of decency" and talked about her personal life.
These statements came a day after Moitra stormed out of the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee meeting. She had alleged that she was asked irrelevant questions about her personal life during the committee's hearing.
Issuing a clarification on the same, Sonkar was quoted by the Hindustan Times as saying, "Only those questions were asked to Mahua Moitra on which there are allegations. She was given the right to give answers to those questions she wanted and not give those she did not wish."
"...only to create obstacles in the investigation, this ruckus was created by her. The kind of words she used for the chairman and members of the ethics committee do not suit an MP or a woman... She wanted to avoid giving answers and create obstacles in the investigation...," Sonkar swas quoted as saying.
Moitra 'went beyond all limits of decency'
Meanwhile, Aparajita Sarangi, BJP MP and member of the Parliament Ethics Committee said, "...She (Moitra) went beyond all limits of decency. Sarangi alleged that Moitra "spoke for more than one hour and she talked about her personal life in which I don't think anybody was interested".
This allegation came in contrast with Moitra's claims that she was the one who was asked irrelevant questions about her personal life during the hearing.
In a video shared by news agency ANI, Sarangi can be heard saying, "We had invited Mahua Moitra and she was supposed to answer our questions. Chairman asked few questions and the Chairman limited his questions to the affidavit submitted by Darshan Hiranandani. So there was no question of going beyond the limits or rather the contents of the affidavit."
"Mahua Moitra spoke for more than 1 hour and she talked about her personal life in which I don't think anybody was interested," the committee member added.
She went on to say, "And then suddenly, there were certain questions pertaining to the contents of the affidavit posed by the Chairman where she actually lost her cool and used all kinds of filthy language against the Chairman and other members of the Committee. She was very arrogant in her demeanour."
What had happened during the hearing?
Moitra appeared before the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee over cash-for-query allegations against her on Thursday. She and opposition members of the panel "walked out" of the meeting on Thursday afternoon.
Opposition members raised questions over the line of questioning and alleged that "personal questions" were posed to the Trinamool Congress MP.
"What kind of meeting was this? They are asking all kinds of filthy questions. They are picking on anything. Talking any rubbish," Moitra told reporters outside the Parliament on Thursday.
According to the Hindustan Times, Moitra wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla that the committee chairman subjected her to the proverbial “vastraharan” by his “unethical, sordid, and prejudiced questions”.
Following the ethics panel meeting, its chairperson and BJP MP Vinod Kumar Sonkar said the committee's task was to conduct a comprehensive probe into the matter. Instead of cooperating, Moitra and opposition members reportedly became angry and used "objectionable words" while making unethical claims against him.
All this allegedly happened during the cross-examination following her deposition before the panel over "cash-for-query" allegations levelled against her.
On Friday, Moitra expressed her readiness to cooperate with the probe while stressing the importance of protection from misogyny and maintaining a standard of decency.
In an interview with PTI, Moitra dubbed the ethics committee probe as a "political witch-hunt" and said the sole intention is to "suspend her" from Parliament.
Moitra is facing 'Cash for Query' charges made by BJP leader Nishiknath Dubey, who alleged that the Trinamool MP had taken bribes from Dubai-based businessman Hiranandani to raise questions in Parliament to target the Adani Group.
Moitra has pleaded innocence to bribery allegations.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Business NewsNewsIndiaMahua Moitra went beyond all limits of decency, talked about her personal life, says Ethics Committee member
First Published:5 Nov 2023, 05:09 PM IST
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