Mahua Moitra Writes Lok Sabha Speaker On Leaking Of Ethics Committee Report To NDTV, Committee To Meet Today (Image:Facebook/MahuaMoitra)
As the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee is expected to meet by today 4pm in the evening with its 500-page report against the Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra on the cash-for-query scam, Ms Moitra released her letter to Lok Sabha speaker demanding an attention to the NDTV involvement in the events. In the letter, Ms Moitra said New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV), a media company currently owned by Adani Group, accessing the confidential draft report of the Ethics committee is a serious breach of privilege.
Ms Moitra has been a vocal critic of Gautam Adani and his business dealings for a long time, and the charges against her were that she had taken bribes from Adani’s business rivals in exchange for asking questions in Parliament. The complaint was initially filed by the BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, in which he accused the MP and ex-investment banker Mahua Moitra took bribes from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to ask questions during the parliament sessions.
Following the row, a 500-page report was drafted by the Parliamentary Ethics Committee recommending Ms Moitra’s expulsion from the Lok Sabha. On Thursday, Ms Moitra accused BJP saying “glad to see that Adani TV has a copy of the Unethical Standing Committee Report before it is placed before the Committee tomorrow”.
She then wrote a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla informing that a serious breach of privilege has occurred and a media channel owned by Adani Group – NDTV – accessed the Committee report illegally. “I wish to inform you of a very serious breach of Rule 275(2) contained in the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha where the Draft Report by the Committee on Ethics on the subject of: Unethical Conduct by Smt. Mahua Moitra, MP, was accessed by NTDV, a media channel, on 8.11.2023, a day before it is to be placed before the Committee. The channel is running news openly claiming “Report Accessed by NDTV” “, she said in the letter.
Have not received any replies from my previous letter to Hon’ble @loksabhaspeaker but am placing this on record anyway. pic.twitter.com/StZ23qf9AK
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) November 9, 2023
According to Ms Moitra it is even more shocking because “this media channel is majority owned by the Adani Group, against whom I have raised very serious issues of corporate fraud and breach of financial and securities regulations, in the Lok Sabha”.
She added that the Adani group is currently under scanner for a Rs 13,000 crore coal scam “where they have over-invoiced imports in addition to serious allegations of corporate fraud in the areas of energy and gas, infrastructure etc. The group”s shareholding pattern is extremely suspect with dubious FPI”s owning stock via the back door in violation of Indian securities regulations”.
She also mentioned that she has been targeted many times for speaking against the Adani Group. Ms Moitra cited a clear breakdown of Lok Sabha rules and processes and also accused that the Lok Sabha speaker avoided her previous complaints. “Have not received any replies from my previous letter to Hon’ble @loksabhaspeaker but am placing this on record anyway”, she wrote in caption to the X (formerly Twitter) post.
