Moitra Claims To Have Turned Down Two Adani Offers For Truce

Mahua Moitra, the beleaguered member of Lok Sabha from the All India Trinamool Congress, finally hinted on Saturday, October 21, that she has turned down two ‘peace offerings’. Moitra is accused of allegedly accepting gifts and cash to ask questions in Parliament to defame Prime Minister Modi and the Adani Group.

In a post on X, Moitra said, “Sorry Mr Adani. I am not taking your deal to shut up for six months.” In the same post, she said further that she was not taking up the ‘second deal’ either, under which she would be free to attack Adani but no the prime minister. Moitra did not provide details of who or how or when the offers were put to her.

In fact, she has accused Adani of paying cash to unnamed people in return for not asking questions. She sarcastically added that now Adani has created a fake campaign against “cash for (asking) questions”.

No details are available yet about the actual cash transaction that may have taken place between Moitra and Dubai-based businessman Darshan Hiranandani. The signed statement by Hiranandani does not mention any cash paid to her. The ethics committee of the Lok Sabha is schedule to hear oral evidence from BJP MP Nishikant Dubey and Jay Anant Dehadrai, Moitra’s former partner, on October 26.

However, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey tweeted on Saturday that investigative agencies (apparently the CBI) have been informed by the National Informatics Centre that Moitra was in India when her password was used — in Dubai — to access her page on the Parliament’s portal, ostensibly to post a question targeting the Adani Group and its alleged links with the Prime Minister. The National Informatics Centre handles all electronic communications of the government and Parliament.

To this, Moitra responded by asking the NIC to release the login details of all Members of Parliament in order to show that they were physically present at places from where the portal was accessed and their passwords were used. Moitra had earlier also suggested that staff, researchers, personal assistant and interns working with MPs have always had access to the portal. However, Dubey seemed to be questioning the use of the password from Dubai, where Hiranandani is based, while Moitra herself was in India.

Meanwhile, former Lok Sabha secretary general PDT Achary was quoted during the day by The Wire as saying that although rules did not prevent Moitra from seeking help in framing questions, sharing passwords may have been inappropriate.

Defiantly, Moitra also posted on X, “Also got message (conveyed) to me about an impending CBI raid. I am busy with Durga Puja. I invite the CBI to come home and count my pairs of shoes.” She said further, “But first please file an FIR to inquire into the Rs 13,000 crore coal money that Adani stole from Indians.”

Moitra continued with her onslaught by posting, “Unknown FPIs own Adani shares whose origin SEBI cannot find & Adani gets MHA clearance to buy Mumbai airport. This is the real question of national security. Not email ID that every PA & every unchecked intern team of every MP has publicly & accesses at will.”