“Explosive Scandal: MP Accuses Colleague of Taking Bribes to Ask Shocking Questions in Parliament! You Won’t Believe the Shocking Twist!”

Accusing her of receiving financial incentives in return for raising questions in Parliament, BJP Lok Sabha MP Nishikant Dubey has filed a complaint against Trinamool Congress (TMC) parliamentarian Mahua Moitra with the House Ethics Committee and has also sought intervention from the Lokpal. Dubey alleges that Moitra accepted “bribes” from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to pose questions that were critical of the Adani conglomerate, in exchange for certain “favors.”

In a letter addressed to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, requesting an investigation, Dubey drew parallels to the 2005 cash-for-questions scandal.

This infamous incident occurred 23 years ago during the early stages of the first term of the UPA government led by Manmohan Singh. The digital platform Cobrapost uncovered the sting operation, known as “Operation Duryodhana,” which exposed MPs who were allegedly willing to promote a particular company and pose questions in the Parliament in exchange for monetary compensation.

Cobrapost reported that the investigation spanned over eight months and included 56 videos, 70 audiotapes, and 900 phone calls. The investigative journalists, Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj, posed as representatives of a fictitious lobbying organization called the North Indian Small Manufacturers Association (NISMA) and successfully infiltrated the network connecting MPs and their intermediaries. They were able to persuade MPs from various political parties to submit more than 60 questions through the rigorous question balloting system of the Indian Parliament, with 25 questions ultimately being selected.

Among the MPs implicated in the sting operation, six were from the BJP, including Chhatarpal Singh Lodha (Odisha), Anna Saheb M K Patil (Erandol, Maharashtra), Chandra Pratap Singh (Sidhi, Madhya Pradesh), Pradeep Gandhi (Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh), Suresh Chandel (Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh), and G Mahajan (Jalgaon, Maharashtra). Additionally, three MPs were from the BSP, one from the RJD, and one from the Congress. Lodha was a Rajya Sabha MP.

On December 12, 2005, Aaj Tak TV channel broadcast video footage from the sting operation, purportedly showing the MPs accepting money.

Following the telecast, the Lok Sabha Speaker formed a parliamentary committee to investigate the matter, with members including Pawan Kumar Bansal (Chairman, Congress), Vijay Kumar Malhotra (BJP), Md Salim (CPM), Ram Gopal Yadav (Samajwadi Party), and C Kuppusamy (Congress). Malhotra issued a dissenting note, questioning the expulsion process and suggesting that only a court could determine the legality of the action.

Based on the committee’s findings, Pranab Mukherjee, who was then the Defense Minister, moved a resolution on December 23, asserting that the conduct of the 10 Lok Sabha MPs was unethical and unbecoming of Parliament members. He proposed their expulsion from the Lok Sabha, a motion that was adopted. However, the BJP protested, with its members walking out, and Leader of Opposition L K Advani likening the expulsion to “capital punishment.”

The Rajya Sabha later expelled Lodha as well after conducting its own investigation through its Ethics Committee, chaired by MP Karan Singh, stating that it was done to maintain the highest standards of integrity and dignity within the House.

Subsequently, the expelled MPs petitioned the Supreme Court, challenging the procedure used by the two Houses of Parliament, alleging it was marked by gross illegality and lacked fairness and impartiality. In 2007, the Supreme Court upheld the expulsion, ruling that the power of expulsion was part of the privileges and immunities of Parliament.

In a surprising turn of events in 2009, the Delhi Police initiated FIRs against the two Cobrapost reporters and examined the role of a middleman in the sting operation. The reporters approached the High Court to have the proceedings against them dismissed, claiming that the police were protecting corrupt MPs and framing them instead. A year later, the Delhi High Court quashed the charges against the reporters.