Kolkata, Oct 20: Vinod Sonkar, the Chairman of the Ethics Committee of Parliament, has disclosed that he has not yet received the letter from businessman Darshan Hiranandani that is central to the ongoing cash-for-query controversy involving Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra.
The ethics committee, he stated, views this as a significant matter and will scrutinize the evidence once it is presented. All involved parties have been requested to provide evidence to the committee.
This controversy started when BJP MP Nishikant Dubey alleged that Mahua Moitra had received “bribes” for asking questions in Parliament. Dubey cited a letter from Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, Moitra’s former partner, to support these claims. Dehadrai claimed to possess “irrefutable” evidence of exchanges of bribes between Moitra and Darshan Hiranandani, a businessman.
Hiranandani subsequently submitted an affidavit to the Ethics Panel, alleging that Moitra had shared her Parliamentary login ID and password with him, enabling him to post questions on her behalf.
Also Read: PM Modi Launches India’s First Regional Rapid Train Service: NaMo Bharat
In response, Mahua Moitra questioned the validity of Hiranandani’s affidavit, noting that it was not on official letterhead, not notarized, and lacked credibility. She also accused Hiranandani of being coerced into signing the affidavit, claiming it was orchestrated by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as an attempt to target her.
Dehadrai has alleged that Moitra received bribes from Hiranandani, specifically for asking questions about the Adani Group, a rival of the Hiranandani Group, during parliamentary proceedings. However, the Hiranandani Group has previously refuted these allegations, asserting that it is not involved in the “business of politics” and has consistently cooperated with the government in the “interest of the people.”
