New Delhi [India], January 23 : The Delhi High Court on Friday extended by two months the time granted to the Lokpal of India to take a decision, in accordance with law, on whether sanction should be accorded to the Central Bureau of Investigation to file a chargesheet against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra in the alleged cash-for-query case.
A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar allowed the extension while making it clear that no further request for additional time would be entertained.
The Court noted that counsel appearing for both Moitra and the CBI did not oppose the Lokpal's request for an extension. The Lokpal had sought additional time to reconsider the issue after its earlier sanction order was set aside by the High Court.
Earlier, the High Court had quashed the Lokpal's November 12 order granting sanction to the CBI to prosecute Moitra, holding that the decision-making process suffered from legal infirmities. The Court had directed the Lokpal to re-examine the matter afresh and pass a reasoned order within a stipulated time.
In her petition, Moitra had argued that despite being granted an opportunity to submit written replies and make oral submissions, her contentions were not properly considered. She had also contended that the Lokpal had invoked an incorrect statutory provision while granting sanction for prosecution.
The High Court, in its earlier ruling, had emphasised that the Lokpal was required to independently assess the material on record and determine whether the case warranted prosecution, closure, or any other course permissible under law.
The case stems from a complaint filed in October 2023 by advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, following which the Lokpal referred the matter to the CBI. The agency submitted a preliminary report in February 2024 and a detailed investigation report in June 2024, culminating in the sanction order that was later set aside.
It was alleged that Moitra purportedly took bribes to ask questions in the Parliament. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had made a complaint against her to Lok Sabha Speaker, alleging that she accepted "cash and gifts" from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to "ask questions in Parliament". Following which she was expelled from Lok Sabha in December 2023 after the House adopted the report of its ethics committee that held her guilty of allegations against her.
Moitra has denied any wrongdoing and in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, she was again elected from the Krishnanagar parliamentary constituency in West Bengal.