The Indian Panorama

Tag: Mahua Moitra

  • Making a mark: Rahul sets the tone for Opposition

    Some of Rahul Gandhi’s searing remarks aimed at the Bharatiya Janata Party, made during his maiden speech as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, have been expunged. Truth is truth, he retorted, ‘I said what I had to say, that is the truth.’ Animated speeches and acrimonious exchanges are part and parcel of parliamentary proceedings. A discernible change in the inaugural session of the 18th Lok Sabha is the Opposition’s new-found confidence. Numerically strong after 10 years and finally with an LoP, the leaders seem determined to exhibit a sense of purpose and make it a stage of equals. It’s too early to form opinions, but the first few sittings have been a far cry from the days when the Opposition voices would get drowned in the cacophonic domination of the Treasury Benches.

    In his counterstrike, the Prime Minister said the Congress got 99 out of 543 seats, not out of 100, questioning its aggressive mode in Parliament. To Rahul Gandhi’s credit, he has set the tone for the Opposition. He and others in the INDIA bloc may well pat themselves on the back for having made a mark. An Opposition speaking truth to power and picking up holes in policies infuses much-needed vigor in the quest for accountability in governance. A caveat persists. Facts are sacrosanct. Oppose, for sure, but only when backed by evidence and research, not hearsay. Else, the best of presentations can get reduced to an exercise in self-indulgence.

    Be strong, do not fear — that’s been the recurring theme in the Opposition ranks after the energizing election results. When any of them has an iota of self-doubt, they must always remember who they have in their corner — the redoubtable, feisty Mahua Moitra is a force to reckon with.

    (Tribune, India)

  • Rewind 2023: Top 10 politicians who grabbed headlines this year

    Rewind 2023: Top 10 politicians who grabbed headlines this year

    Narendra Modi
    Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s iconic waving of Indian flag at the Chandrayaan-3 launch to handing over the ODI World Cup to Australia, kept the newsrooms busy. While the PM was credited for the victories of three states — Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh, he was also said to be the inspiration for the successful launch of Chandrayaan-3. He also added another feather to India’s achievements after hosting the G-20 global summit. PM Modi was also honoured with Ebakl Award by the Republic of Palau and Companion of the Order of Fiji, the highest honor of Fiji in May.
    Rahul Gandhi

    The Congress leader’s Bharat Jodo Yatra ended in January. However, things got bad for the leader when his membership ended after a court conviction in the Modi surname case. Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as a member of parliament in the Lok Sabha after being found guilty of defamation case. Gandhi was subsequently sentenced to two years in prison. He however was reinstated following the Supreme Court overruled the conviction on August 7.
    Bhajanlal Sharma

    The BJP named Bhajanlal Sharma as its surprise pick for the CM post on December 12. Sharma, who is from Bharatpur district, won the Sanganer constituency of Jaipur with a margin of 48,081 votes. He was regarded as a dedicated RSS and BJP worker, who went about his job without making any fuss. He moved up the ladder in the state BJP, holding responsibilities in the organisation but never in the government. About three decades back, he held his first public office as the sarpanch of a village in Bharatpur district.
    Revanth Reddy

    An indomitable Congress fighter, Revanth Reddy, took on the mighty BRS and was named the Telangana Chief Minister after the grand old party registered a win on K Chandrasekhar Rao’s turf. Reddy is credited with steering the Congress to power in Telangana by challenging both the mighty BRS, which had a stranglehold on Telangana politics, and the ambitious BJP, which was striving hard to emerge as the alternative. Reddy’s career in public life is intriguing as it began with student activism in the right-wing ABVP and later included a brief period of incarceration amid bribery allegations. He played a spirited role as PCC president in the battle against the BRS, led by former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who enjoys a larger-than-life image.
    Vishnu Deo Sai

    Vishnu Deo Sai was named as Chhattisgarh’s fourth Chief Minister. Vishnu Deo Sai, who began as a sarpanch in Chhattisgarh in 1990, went on to become multiple-time MP and a Union minister, emerging as the BJP’s tribal face known for humility and organisational skills. Sai, 59, is the first tribal chief minister from the BJP which decided to give the top post to a leader from the community that accounts for nearly 32 per cent of the state’s population and is the second most dominant social group after OBCs. Sai is known for his down-to-earth approach, work dedication and determination to achieve goals.
    Mohan Yadav
    The BJP has picked Mohan Yadav (58), an OBC leader and a three-time MLA, as the next chief minister of Madhya Pradesh. Yadav, the three-time BJP MLA, is the 19th chief minister of Madhya Pradesh. The elevation of Yadav, who was not among the contenders for the CM’s post, is being seen as a move by the BJP to win over the numerically significant Other Backward Classes (OBC) community in other parts of the country ahead of the Lok Sabha polls due next year. The OBCs account for more than 48 per cent of Madhya Pradesh’s population and form the core voter base for the saffron party.
    Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the four-term chief minister, was replaced as Madhya Pradesh CM by BJP’s pick Mohan Yadav. BJP not giving another term to Chouhan rolled many eyeballs at a time when Chouhan was credited for the change of winds for the party in the state. Before polls, experts were of the view that Congress may win back the state. However, Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s ‘Ladli Behna scheme’, which provides eligible women Rs 1,250 monthly financial assistance, and later promised to gradually hike the amount to Rs 3,000 is said to be the game-changer in the elections. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, after being sidelined by the party, has still vowed to get maximum seats in Lok Sabha elections for the BJP.
    Manish Sisodia

    The AAP leader was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26 for his alleged role in corruption in the formulation and implementation of the Delhi Excise Policy 2020-21. Sisodia, who held the excise portfolio, resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28. The ED too arrested the leader in a money laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9 after questioning him in Tihar jail. The AAP leader has been in custody since then. The court recently extended the judicial custody of AAP leader till January 10, 2024.
    Mahua Moitra

    TMC leader Mahua Moitra was expelled from the Lok Sabha in the ‘cash-for-query’ case. The Ethics Committee’s report, which held her accountable for accepting gifts and illegal gratification, paved the way for her expulsion, the move which is regarded as a blow to her 14-year political career. Moitra, who was an investment banker with JP Morgan Chase in New York and London before shifting her trajectory to politics, has however moved the Supreme Court to challenge her expulsion from the Lok Sabha, after the House adopted the report of its Ethics Committee that held her guilty of accepting gifts and illegal gratification from a businessman to further his interests. According to TMC sources, the party leadership has affirmed Moitra’s candidacy for the Krishnanagar seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
    Ajit Pawar
    Nephew of NCP chief Sharad Pawar grabbed the headlines when he forced split the party by taking away eight MLAs joining the Eknath Shinde government. Since then, he has been describing himself as the party’s national president. He defended his move of joining the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government, saying several top politicians took “different” stand in the political history of the state. At present, the uncle and the nephew are busy fighting their cases in the Supreme Court over the name and symbol of the party.

  • Ethics Committee report on Mahua Moitra tabled in Lok Sabha

    Ethics Committee report on Mahua Moitra tabled in Lok Sabha

    The Ethics Committee of Lok Sabha on Friday, December 8, tabled its report on the cash-for-query allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, in the lower house of the Parliament. The panel’s chief, BJP MP Vijay Sonkar, tabled the report. Soon after the tabling of the controversial report, the Lok Sabha was adjourned for two hours amid ruckus in the House.
    The panel has reportedly recommended Moitra’s expulsion from the Lok Sabha over the charge that she asked businessman Darshan Hiranandani’s questions using her parliamentary portal in exchange for bribes.
    Moitra has admitted that she shared her credentials with the businessman but the questions asked were hers. She has said she used the businessman’s staff to type out her questions on the portal. She has denied having accepted any bribes or violating any parliamentary rules.
    The Opposition has been demanding a discussion on the report in the House.

     

  • Mahua Moitra Expelled From Parliament Over Cash-For-Query Row

    Mahua Moitra Expelled From Parliament Over Cash-For-Query Row

    • Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of having “planned” the expulsion of Ms Moitra

    NEW DELHI (TIP): Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra has been expelled from the Lok Sabha following an Ethics Committee report into the ‘cash for query’ charges against her. Ms Moitra, 49, was accused of taking bribes, including ₹ 2 crore in cash and “luxury gift items”, from businessman Darshan Hiranandani, in exchange for asking questions critical of the Narendra Modi government in Parliament.
    Ms Moitra was also accused of surrendering log-in credentials to a confidential account on the parliamentary website so Mr Hiranandani could post questions directly. A fiery critic of the Modi government, Ms Moitra had denied the bribery charges but admitted to sharing the log-in details. After a tempestuous discussion and voice vote, Mr Birla said, “This House accepts the conclusions of the Committee – that MP Mahua Moitra’s conduct was immoral and indecent. So, it is not appropriate for her to continue as an MP…”

    Hours earlier the Ethics Committee presented its report – a nearly 500-page tome – in the House, triggering a furious row between the ruling BJP and the opposition, including Ms Moitra’s party.

    In the brief discussion that followed, apoplectic opposition MPs from the Congress and Trinamool demanded more time to study the material, and fought for Ms Moitra to be allowed to speak.

    However, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla refused permission, citing the 2005 expulsion of 10 MPs, including six from the BJP, who were caught in a similar controversy. Then Speaker, Somnath Chatterjee, said the MPs had lost the right to speak in the House after the report was tabled.

    The report against Ms Moitra noted “allegations of accepting illegal gratification (are) clearly established and are undeniable”, and that “taking gifts from (a) businessman to whom she handed over log-in (details) amounts to a quid pro quo… unbecoming of an MP and is unethical conduct”.

    On the point Ms Moitra accepted cash as part of the bribes, the report called for the government to “criminally investigate and unearth the ‘money trail’”, for which it said it “does not have expertise”.

    The Ethics Committee’s final recommendation was that “…Smt Mahua Moitra, MP, may be expelled from the membership of the Seventeenth Lok Sabha”. It also called for “a legal institutional inquiry by the Government… in view of unethical, heinous, and criminal conduct of Smt Mahua Moitra…”

    This morning, as she walked into Parliament, a typically fierce Ms Moitra paused only to tell reporters, “Maa Durga aa gayi hai, ab dekhenge…Jab naash manuj par chhata hai, pehle vivek mar jaata hai (Maa Durga has come! Now we will see.. when destruction comes, conscience dies first).”

    Trinamool boss and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of having “planned” the expulsion of Ms Moitra – who is one of the ruling party’s fiercest and most vocal critics. “… but this will help her before the election,” Ms Banerjee said. The 2024 Lok Sabha election is just months away.

  • TMC MP Mahua Moitra takes the Modi government to task for its dismal misgovernance

    TMC MP Mahua Moitra takes the Modi government to task for its dismal misgovernance

    NEW DELHI (TIP): TMC MP Mahua Moitra’s  speech on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address enumerated a number of human rights violations and alleged executive excesses during the last few years of the Narendra Modi government. In her usual belligerent style, she made a note of how the US-based Freedom House Report downgraded India’s status from “free” to “partly free” and that India has fallen 17 spots to 111th position out of 160 countries in the Human Freedom Index. She also mentioned that India is at an abysmal 142nd position out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, adding that the country “remains one of the most dangerous places for journalists today.” Her speech was peppered with references to the farmers’ agitation, the ‘Bulli Deals’ app in which Muslim women were auctioned and the Pegasus spyware controversy.Ms Mahua said:  “The way the masters of the republic mistrust the present is most accurately illustrated by the Pegasus mess. The government stands accused of having spent taxpayers’ money to buy technology to spy for years on its own citizens. To paraphrase a leading journalist, the New York Times is lying, The Wire is lying, Amnesty is lying, the French government is lying, the German government is lying, the US government is lying, WhatsApp and Apple – who have sued NSO are lying. Only this government is in splendid isolation with the truth on Pegasus. One minister calls it Supari media, another stands up in this house and lies to us blatantly. The government has misled even the Supreme Court.”She continued with references to raids on opposition leaders ahead of elections, targeting of Muslims by Hindu fundamentalists and recent attacks on Christians by the same groups in 19 Indian towns. She lashed out at the Union government’s attempts to alter IAS cadre rules and said that the tweaking of rules was a heavy-handed move by the Union government to “bully” bureaucrats in the states.“You mistrust the Jats, Sikhs and anyone who stands up to you. But as elections are around the corner, you shamelessly put on a pagdi,” she said in an apparent reference to the prime minister who had donned a Sikh turban during the NCC Republic Day camp. “You (the government) want to get inside our homes, what we eat, what we wear,” Moitra said.

    Moitra claimed that the mention of freedom fighters in the president’s address was mere “lip service”. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, who Kovind referred to in the speech, held the view that the government of India should have an absolutely neutral and impartial attitude towards all religions. Stating this, she asked, “Would Netaji have approved of a Haridwar Dharma Sansad that issues blood-curdling calls for Muslim genocide?”Moitra also accused the government of being in fear of an India which was “comfortable in its own skin”. “Ours is a living constitution, it breathes as long as we are willing to breathe life into it. Otherwise, it is just a piece of paper, black and white, that can be smudged into shades of grey by any majoritarian government,” she said.

    The TMC MP also accused the Modi government of seeking to “alter history” and said, “They are fearful of the future and they mistrust the present.” She added that “this battle of 80% vs 20% that this government has started risks destroying our republic.” She appealed to all opposition parties to come together and defeat the BJP. “Woh Subah hum hi se aayegi (That dawn will come from us). Enough of sahanshilta (tolerance), daya (symapthy), Kshama (forgiveness), it is time now to become Tipu’s (Sultan) springing tiger.”

    (With inputs collected by  Dave Makkar)