Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra made an appearance before the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee concerning the alleged cash-for-query case.
The investigation was initiated in October after complaints by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Nishikant Dubey and lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, accusing Moitra of accepting bribes from businessperson Darshan Hiranandani to ask questions in Parliament.
Initially, the Hiranandani Group dismissed Dubey's allegations against Moitra, but later, Darshan Hiranandani himself submitted an affidavit to the ethics committee, accusing Moitra of spreading unverified information about industrialist Gautam Adani.
Moitra was called to testify before the committee, and she requested an extension due to prior commitments, which the panel did not initially grant.
She also sought permission to cross-examine Dehadrai and Hiranandani, emphasizing the lack of concrete evidence to support the bribery allegations and questioning the committee's suitability for examining criminal allegations.
She pointed out the contrast in treatment compared to BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri, who is also under investigation by the Ethics Committee for hate speech.
Moitra noted that Bidhuri was summoned for oral evidence but did not attend, citing election campaigning in Rajasthan.
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