The Lok Sabha on Friday expelled All India Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra over the “cash-for-query” allegation through a voice vote. Opposition members argued that they should be given more time to analyse the Ethics Committee report once it was tabled for discussion, but the request wasn’t allowed by Speaker Om Birla.
Lok Sabha
The Lower House witnessed heavy protests and two adjournments in the first half of the day in anticipation of the Ethics Committee report.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi moved the motion to expel Ms. Moitra as per the recommendation of the Ethics Committee report, which found her guilty of sharing her credentials with others and accepting gifts for favours from a businessman. Opposition members requested Mr. Birla to allow Ms. Moitra to address the House, but Mr. Joshi refuted the request, saying that the precedent in the matter as set by former Speaker Somnath Chatterjee dictates that members who have been given time to present their arguments to Ethics Committee are not allowed to speak during the same discussion in the House.
Meanwhile, while speaking against Ms. Moitra’s expulsion, JD(U) MP Girdhari Yadav said that he never prepared his questions as he did not know how to use a computer, and that his login credentials are available to his staff. Mr. Birla warned that such admission could result in official action against him.
Rajya Sabha
Rajya Sabha on Friday mainly focused on the scheduled business of the day. There was, however, a brief period of chaos when a Private Members’ Bill seeking to repeal the Waqf Act, 1995 was taken up.
The Waqf Repeal Bill, 2022, which was moved for introduction by BJP’s Harnath Singh Yadav, met with strong opposition from several members, including leaders from the Congress, DMK, CPI (M), and TMC. Claiming that the Bill will drive polarisation, the Opposition demanded a division of votes. While 53 MPs approved the Bill, 32 opposed it, which paved the way for the BJP leader to introduce it.
The Bill will, however, be discussed later.
Meanwhile, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar informed the House that the time of the post-lunch session has been changed from 2.30 p.m. to 2 p.m., in line with the Lok Sabha’s.
More than 70 Private Members Bills were introduced in the Rajya Sabha, post-lunch. This included a Bill to further amend the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, introduced by Dr. Fauzia Khan.
Dr. V. Sivadasan introduced three bills in the Rajya Sabha, including the Right to Free Internet Bill, 2023, the Right to Public Space Bill, 2023 and the Right to Early Childhood Care Bill, 2023. JD(U) MP Ramnath Thakur introduced the Freedom of Marriage and Association and Prohibition of Crimes in the name of Honour Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha. BJP MP Biplab Kumar Deb introduced the Compulsory Teaching of Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) in Schools Bill, 2023, which seeks to “enable students towards becoming Pro-Planet People in the 21st century.”
Parliament proceedings will now resume on Monday, December 11, at 11 a.m.
(Compiled by Sumeda, Suchitra Karthikeyan, Sruthi Darbhamulla, and Priyali Prakash)
