Why TMC is silent on Mahua Moitra as she faces parliamentary probe

As the parliamentary committee on ethics met on October 26 to record the statements of Delhi-based lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey in the probe against Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra, her party colleagues said their top leadership is maintaining silence on the bribe for questions allegation because it has put the TMC in an embarrassing position ahead of a strategic move against the Centre.

“The allegation against Moitra has surfaced at a time when TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee is planning a second Delhi agitation to be led by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, protesting suspension of central funds for welfare schemes under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (MNREGA) and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY),” a TMC MP said on condition of anonymity.

“The agitation is supposed to be held as soon as the chief minister, who is suffering from an old leg injury, is fit to travel. She is widely seen as a symbol of honesty and integrity and is also a face of the INDIA coalition of the opposition parties. The ethics committee probe against one of her most vocal MPs has put the party in an uncomfortable position before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls,” a TMC MP said on condition of anonymity.

Incidentally, Moitra was at the forefront when Abhishek Banerjee led the first agitation in Delhi from October 2 to 4. Before returning to Kolkata, he announced that a much bigger agitation would be led by Mamata Banerjee.

Dubey has alleged that Moitra, the MP from Krishnanagar in Bengal’s Nadia district, took bribe from industrialist Darshan Hiranandani for raising questions in the Lok Sabha about industrialist Gautam Adani’s businesses.

Moitra has filed a defamation suit at the Delhi high court against Dubey and Dehadrai, her former friend, who claims to have evidence that back the allegation.

Hiranandani initially denied the charge but later claimed in a signed affidavit that Moitra targeted Adani to “malign and embarrass” Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has often been accused by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of favouring the Adani Group.

TMC’s Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs said the party never dictated the issues and questions they raised in Parliament.

“Our party always gave us the freedom to raise questions of our choice but there was an unwritten code which says the issues must be related to problems faced by common people or policies of the Centre. TMC MPs are not supposed to target an individual if he is not a politician,” a second MP said.

“I will not be surprised if the leadership now sets guideline or starts monitoring the activities of MPs inside Parliament,” he added.

So far, only Firhad Hakim, Bengal’s urban development minister and Kolkata mayor, has spoken in support of Moitra.

On October 23, Hakim, a close aide of the chief minister, said: “I cannot say what our party is thinking but personally I feel that this is an effort to silence Mahua because she raises questions against the BJP and Modi.”

On the same day, TMC state general secretary and spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said: “Only Mahua Moitra can comment on the issue because she is dealing with it. The party will not make any statement.”

On October 24, Hakim restrained himself before the media. “I will not comment on Mahua but I am beside her,” he said.

“This is not the first time that Moitra’s actions have caused embarrassment for TMC. The perspectives of the earlier incidents were, however, quite different,” a state TMC leader said.

In December 2020, Moitra was boycotted by Bengali news channels and criticised by journalists across the state after she referred to the media as “two-paisa press” at a TMC meeting in Nadia district. A video showing her making the statement went viral.

The Kolkata Press Club, which was set up in 1945, condemned her remark and demanded an apology. Journalists across Bengal used the image of an old two paisa coin as their avatars on social media pages. The TMC leadership distanced itself from the young MP.

In July 2022, TMC condemned Moitra’s statement that Kali, to her, is a “meat eating, alcohol accepting Goddess.” The BJP demanded her arrest on charges of hurting Hindu religious sentiments although many priests and believers said what she meant has been practised for centuries.