New Delhi, 03-01-2024: The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Lok Sabha secretary-general regarding the plea of Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra, who is challenging her expulsion from the Lower House. The bench, comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, declined to issue any interim order allowing Moitra to attend the proceedings, indicating that such a decision would be akin to granting her main petition. The court also refused to issue notice to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and the Committee on Ethics of Lok Sabha, stating it would only seek a reply from the Lok Sabha secretary-general.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Moitra, had requested interim relief to permit her to attend the House proceedings, but the court deferred any decision on that until March. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Lok Sabha secretary-general, urged the court not to issue a formal notice, committing to filing a response to Moitra’s petition. Mehta argued against the court intervening in the internal discipline matter of the sovereign organ of the state. The court scheduled further hearings for the week beginning March 11.
On December 8, following a contentious debate in the Lok Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi moved a motion to expel Moitra from the House for “unethical conduct,” which was accepted by a voice vote. The ethics committee found Moitra guilty of “unethical conduct” and contempt of the House for sharing her Lok Sabha members’ portal credentials with unauthorized individuals, impacting national security. The committee suggested an intense legal and institutional inquiry be initiated by the government.
The motion asserted that Moitra’s “conduct has further been found to be unbecoming as an MP for accepting gifts and illegal gratification from a businessman to further his interest, which is a serious misdemeanour and highly deplorable conduct” on her part. The ethics committee Chairman had presented the panel’s first report on a complaint filed by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey. The complaint alleged Moitra received gifts and cash from a businessman to attack industrialist Gautam Adani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha. Businessman Darshan Hiranandani claimed in an affidavit that Moitra provided him with her login credentials for the Lok Sabha members’ website. The Central Bureau of Investigation has initiated a preliminary FIR in the case.
#MahuaMoitra #SupremeCourt #LokSabha #EthicsCommittee #Parliament #LegalChallenge #ExpulsionControversy #PoliticalDiscipline