Hiranandani ‘forced to sign white paper’: Mahua Moitra on ‘Cash for Query’ case

In a two-page statement, Moitra raised some questions about the credibility of the affidavit Hiranandani reportedly filed before the Parliament’s ethics committee, claiming that it was “neither recorded on official stationery nor notarized” and that its contents of the letter “a joke.”

“The affidavit is on white paper, and not on official letterhead or notarized. Why would one of India’s most respected/educated businessmen sign a letter like this on white paper unless a gun was put to his head to prove it doing?” Mahua said in a press statement.

Also read: TMC MP Mahua Moitra files defamation case against BJP’s Nishikant Dubey amid furor over ‘cash for questions’ claim

‘The contents of the letter are a joke. It was clearly drafted by some dimwit in the PMO, who also doubles as a creative writer in the IT cell of the BJP. The letter sings paeans to Modi and Gautam Adani and links all their opponents together. against me and my alleged corruption,” Moitra alleged.

Further, attacking the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the TMC leader said: “Paragraph 12 claims that Darshan gave in to my demands because he was afraid of displeasing me. Darshan and his father run one of India’s largest business groups and their recent ventures. in UP and Gujarat have been inaugurated by the CM of Uttar Pradesh and by the Prime Minister. Darshan recently accompanied the Prime Minister as part of his business delegation. Why should such a wealthy businessman who enjoys direct access to every minister and the PMO be forced by a new opposition MP to give her gifts and fulfill her demands?”

“It is completely illogical and only confirms the truth that the letter was written by the PMO and not by Darshan,” the TMC MP said.

Also read: Nishikant Dubey’s allegations on Mahua Moitra: Opposition calls it ‘gimmick’, BJP says ‘immediate probe is needed’

She further asked businessman Hiranandani why he did not officially release the letter if he had “confessed” the claims.

“If he indeed witnessed all my corruption, why was he with me during that time, and why did he wait until now to make it public? And if he wrote to the CBI and the LS Speaker, why from the 543 Would he like to forward the letter to Nishikant Dubey, whom I have repeatedly exposed in Parliament and outside and against whom I have filed pending privilege motions?” she asked.

Alleging that businessman Hiranandani was ‘forced’ to sign the letter, Moitra said, ‘The PMO held a proverbial gun to Darshan and his father’s heads and gave them twenty minutes to sign this letter sent to them. They were threatened with a total closure of all their businesses. They were told that they would be ready, the CBI would raid them and all government business would stop and all PSU bank financing would be stopped immediately.”

“The draft of this letter was sent by the PMO and he was forced to sign it. And the letter was immediately leaked to the press,” she said.

“This is the usual modus operandi of this BJP government or rather the Gautam Adani government led by the BJP. “Every effort is being made to defame me and isolate and frighten those close to me,” she alleged.

“I will continue to oppose Mr Adani until he answers the many questions he is obliged to answer to the people of this great country,” she added.

The confrontation between BJP MP Nishikant Dubey and TMC MP Mahua Moitra over his ‘Cash for Query’ allegations has taken a new twist.

Hiranandani, who was allegedly behind the said payouts, has responded for the first time in an affidavit.

The businessman said he lives in Dubai and came across letters dated October 14 from lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai to the CBI and to BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, where his name figured prominently. He says he has followed events closely.

In his affidavit, the businessman admitted that he befriended the TMC MP.

“I have known Mahua since I met her at the Bengal Summit in 2017… Over time, she has become a close personal friend of mine… But as our interactions grew over time, she asked for opportunities and possibilities.” ends that I spent a lot of time on,” the affidavit reads

Hiranandani then claims that the TMC MP saw the attack on the Adani group as a route to fame.

“She became a Lok Sabha MP in May 2019. Her friends told her that the shortest path to fame was to attack Narendra Modi. She thought the only way to attack Prime Minister Modi was to attack Gautam Adani and his group fall. both of them are from Gujarat,” his affidavit reads.

Hiranandani then claims that Mahua Moitra shared her Parliament credentials with him.

“She knew that Indian Oil Corporation was entering into an agreement with Dhamra LNG, a joint venture of the Adani group. She drafted a few questions to ask in Parliament that would contain elements to embarrass the government and target the Adani. group. She shared her email address as an MP with me so I could send her information and she could ask the questions. I agreed to her proposal,” he claims in his affidavit.

Darshan Hiranandani also claims that he used the TMC MP’s credentials to raise questions about the Adani group himself.

“She also received unverified data from various sources, including some claiming to be former associates of the Adani Group. Certain information was shared with me, based on which I continued to draft and post questions with the help of her parliamentary login,” he said in his affidavit. .

Hiranandani then claims that the TMC MP also demanded favors and gifts from him.

“She regularly made demands of me and asked for various favors. The demands included donating her expensive luxuries…travel expenses, vacations, etc.,” he alleges in his affidavit.

This latest affidavit of Hiranandani came even as the ethics committee had summoned Nishikant Dubey and lawyer Jain Anant Dehadrai to submit oral evidence on the ‘Cash for Query’ allegations leveled by the BJP MP.

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Updated: Oct 20, 2023 08:03 AM IST